Pokemon Drama Island
by Alpaca The Writing Writer
Summary: Twenty-eight teenage Pokemon compete on an island for the chance of winning half a million dollars. Hosted by Wes the Blaziken and his co-host/camp cook, Lloyd the Dusknoir. Rated T (just to be safe).
1. Such Unlucky Campers Part 1

**Hey! Ya!**

 **For anyone who stuck around for the months I've been gone, sorry for leaving for such a long time! To keep it short, I've been dealing with too much for a while but now I have two stories I have more confidence in than ever before! I hope you guys enjoy this and another story I'll soon have out. I'll appreciate any reviews that'll help me improve my writing and this story, but no hateful stuff please! Let's avoid any drama in the reviews!**

 **Without further ado, I hope you enjoy!**

 **See! Ya!**

"Welcome, drama fans from all around the world!" The Blaziken introduces, standing proudly on a dock. "Here on the freshly purchased island of Maranga Kee, a glorious new show will be set here, called, of course… Pokemon Drama Island! This shindig's all emceed by me, the handsome, the charming, the host to toast to: Wes O'Callaghan!"

"For the whole summer, you, the viewers, will be gripping onto the edge of your seats as you witness these grueling weeks of twenty-eight teens going through grueling competish! We'll have it all: the public humiliation, the painful challenges, the emotionally unstable contestants, and of course… the drama!"

The camera views showcase various areas of the island.

"This shady summer camp's got the essentials! Neglected campgrounds…

Cue shot of the wooden cabins made of creaky wood and likely filled with lots of dust.

"Nature we didn't bother to securely check through…"

Cue woods with a vast amount of trees with _seemingly_ nothing else.

"An outhouse for campers to share some juicy gossip…"

Cue the wooden outhouse; a Grimer intern suddenly rushing out as they try to keep themselves from hurling.

"...and maybe a bunch more! These campers must endure these wicked challenges, poor living arrangements, and the sad company of each other to win the grand prize of half a million dollars! Who will bite the dust? Who will suck it up and endure it until they're victorious? Who will just lose all hope on this crummy island?" The hosts says as he starts cracking up at that last part. "Find on right here, right now, on Pokemon… Drama… Island!"

Catching his attention, a distant call of a Lapras approaching the island is heard.

"And now, our very first camper is arriving to the island! Let's find out if they're winner material or just chump material!" Smirks Wes.

The first Lapras swims up to the dock, letting off their first contestant. The Braixen stares in awe at the island. He grips his backpack tightly, biting his lip as he went star-eyed.

"Torvald! Welcome as the first contestant-slash-camper on Pokemon Drama Island!" Wes greets.

"Haah! Wow!" Torvald gleams, rushing up to the host. He jumps onto his back, eagerly examining the host. "You're the host!? I've never met a Blaziken in person! You're feathers are super soft and very lovely!"

"Y-Yeah…" The Blaziken frowns, lifting the fox by his ears. "I use quite the etiquette product for it… Now be a good freak and go stand at the other side of the dock. You gotta stand by for more, uh… 'potential friends.'"

"Ooh! Yes sir!" The Braixen salutes, dangling from the host's grip. He plops back onto his feet and hums along the way to the other side of the dock.

"Just _had_ to get him as the first one…" Mumbles Wes. "Well, whatever! Let's keep it going!"

The next Lapras is grasping onto the Pokemon's luggage from her mouth. Her head lays low, blushing, as she approaches the island. From her back, the Primarina gracefully flips off onto the dock, balancing on her big tail and using water to have her hair flow up elegantly.

"Pleased to announce that Queen Lani has arrived as requested~!" She sings proudly.

"Uh…" Wes looks on confused. "Welcome, Momilani."

"A beautiful welcome to you as well, Mr. Wes!" Smiles the Primarina. "It's a pleasure to meet you and I'm sure it's a pleasure to meet me!"

"Oh yeah. It's a _fantastic_ pleasure." Wes rolls his eyes. "Just go ahead and wait over by the other weir- kid. The other kid. Just… go over there." He rubs his forehead in slight frustration.

"Don't be flustered, Mr. Wes. It's only the first day." She giggles, making her way to stand by Torvald.

"Wow! You've got a very lovely appeal, Queen Lani!" The Braixen gleams.

The Primarina smiles in curiosity. "Thank you, sunny one. I hope my beauty may encourage you to express yours to the fullest."

Wes shakes his head. "Freakin' weirdos man… Just give me a normal teen, already."

The Lapras spits out the contestant's luggage. "She was _only_ annoying the whole swim here, Mr. O'Callaghan." The Lapras complains before swimming away.

The next Lapras arrives right after the previous one departs, dropping off a Zangoose. She hoists her duffel bag over her shoulder and calmly walks up to the host.

"Hey there Wes! Nice to meetcha ya!" She grinned waving.

"Well, it's about time someone less, uh, 'unique' showed up." Wes greets, giving a handshake to one of her claws. "I bet you're thrilled for the competition, huh April?"

"You bet! I just _gotta_ ace this thing, man!" She pumps her arms eagerly before joining the other two.

The next Lapras drops off a Sawk, holding a single suitcase for himself. He sternly wipes some water off his karate gi as he approaches the host.

"J-J-J-Joseph!" Wes greets enthusiastically. "Welcome to the island, man!"

"Thanks, Wes." He nods. "I hope the competition will not be too rough for everyone. And of course… nice to meet you."

As he walks away to join the other few, the next camper arrives. The Midday Lycanroc leaps onto the docks, carrying her suitcase by her teeth.

"Next up: Sascha! How's it goin'?" The host asks the wolf.

The Lycanroc puts her belongings down for a moment. "I humbly accepted my place here on this island, and am in your debt to be here, Hostman." She bows before biting up her luggage and moving on.

"Freakin… nutjobs all around." The Blaziken mutters. "But forget it! Teens are teens! Next up is…"

The next camper to arrive is a Phanpy, headbutting his duffel bag all the way to the host.

" _Huff… Huff…_ " The little elephant pants. "My noggin sure is out of shape. B-But that doesn't mean my spirit is either!" He pouts, wagging his short tail.

"All is well, little dude." Wes merrily shrugs. "Nice to meet ya, uh… Wheat, right?"

"Yes sir!" He nods. "My Papa told me to stand proud with it!"

"Nice to hear that… Now go stand over with the others." Says Wes.

The Phanpy continues to headbutt his bag towards the pile of luggage collecting up. However, Joseph quietly grabs his bag for him and lightly tosses it in the pile.

"Hey! I could've done it myself!" Pouts Wheat. "But… my Papa's taught me the gift in kindness, so… thank you very much!"

Joseph shrugs before returning to his spot, followed along by Wheat.

"That's hella kind of you!" April grins.

"...I see it more as 'common sense.'" The Sawk smiles and crosses his arms.

Arriving next, a Machoke is aboard the next Lapras. The moment he steps onto the dock, he throws his luggage directly into the pile, causing other luggage to be knocked around.

" _Boomtown_ , baby!" He yells out, eagerly flexing and posing his muscled body. "Ya boi Sergio's here!"

"Hey-ho, Sergio! Kinda diggin' the excitement you're bringin' in, dude." Wes says as he fist bumps with the broad Pokemon.

" _Supa! Killa!_ " Sergio shouts energetically. "Let me tell you, it's rad to be here Wes. I couldn't thank you enough for letting me be a super star on worldwide television!"

"Sure thing, 'star!'" Wes smirks as Sergio joins the others. As the musclehead walks by him, Wes chuckles and slightly shakes his head at the camera.

An Abra was the next contestant to arrive. Indulging in her book, she floats towards the host, levitating her luggage alongside her.

"Greetings, Yanna! Welcome to PDI!" Greets the host.

"Yo." She peace signs as she floats by the host. Wes only eyes her in slight confusion before turning his attention on the next camper.

"Hello-Hello!" The Flaaffy greets, skipping up to the host with her luggage in tow. "It's super-super to be here!"

"Welcome, Paisley." Wes grins, crossing his arms. "How's it hangin'?"

"Hmm…" Paisley pauses, glancing at the island's weak and rundown campsite. "Weeelll… the campground seems crappier than a trailer park used solely as a dump, but I'm getting the feeling that once time soars by, all of us will be having a blast here! Tee hee hee!"

As she giggles along to the others, Wes's jaw dropped.

" _She's_ the one to call BS on this crummy island? Dang. Teens are _definitely_ hard to read these days." Wes scratches his head.

"Is that some way for a young lady to speak?" Momilani raises a brow at the pink sheep.

"Is that some way a pig-mouthed dumpster should speak to their superiors?" Smiles Paisley. The Primarina and a few others were stunned by her mixed behavior.

"O-Oh my…" Momilani murmurs.

The next Pokemon loudly jumps onto the dock, carrying his worn-out duffel bag. The Midnight Lycanroc, without saying a single word, moves along past Wes and simply joins the others.

"And that, everyone…" Wes smirks as the Lycanroc drops his bag and kicks it over to the pile of possessions without even eying it, "is _Keone_. Embrace him with open arms, if you would."

" _Okay_!" Torvald smiles, spreading his arms out for the Lycanroc.

"...can I even question what you're doing?" The Lycanroc grunts.

"I guess so? But what's there to question?" Torvald tilts his head.

"Ugh…" Keone sighs.

The Sawk calmly places his hand on the Braixen's shoulder. "I'd be more cautious of someone of his caliber." Joseph cautions.

"You're one to talk." Yanna comments. This earned the Abra a raised brow from the fighter.

The next Lapras arrives soon enough, dropping off a Houndoom with a large backpack on him. He stands still on the dock, unsurely looking around at everyone as he quivers.

"Hey there, Grey. How's it going?" Wes asks. However, the Houndoom nervously walks by the host with his head lowered in embarrassment. Once he slides his bag into the pile, he keeps his distance from the others. A few other contestants exchange confused glances.

"Silent… but I wonder if deadly?" Wes cheekily smirks.

"Don't worry. I'm sure he'll warm up to us eventually." Shrugs Torvald with a smile.

"...kinda doubt it." Comments Yanna. Grey's blush burns up even more after her comment.

The next contestant to arrive is a Sableye. She slumps her bag over her shoulder, scoping out her surroundings as she approaches the host.

"'Sup Nora?" Asks Wes.

"This place looks rotten from land to sea, Wes." The Sableye frowns.

"But all the greenery and water seem pretty healthy." Torvald adds on.

"She's just saying it sucks, dude. Sheesh." Sergio rolls his eyes.

"Yeah, well, it's what you signed up for, though, kiddo." Wes says, patting her head. "Get used to this place if you're gonna win that big grand prize."

The ghost girl growls lowly before walking over to the others, making sure to give a sharp glare at the host.

"But before we move on, toss me back my wallet if you don't mind." Smirks the host.

"Figured." Nora rolls her eyes as she tossed back his wallet. "But I still scored fifty bucks. Heh heh." She smirks waving the stolen bill in front of her.

" _That's not an honorable thing to do._ " Whispers Sascha, glaring.

"Honor? What am I, some fantasy hero? What's that crud gotta do with me?" Nora smiles deviously, taking her spot. The Lycanroc lightly shakes her head in disappointment.

The next Lapras arrives with a Sandslash shaking as he prepares himself to disembark. The sand rodent trembles where he stands as he nervously grips onto his suitcase, staring down at the dock.

"O-Okay. You can do this. No… No mishaps this summer." He mumbles to himself. The Sandslash makes the attempt to leap onto the dock, however, his foot gets caught onto one of the Lapras's blunt knobs.

"Aw crap!" He shouts. He nearly flips over completely, crashing his head on the edge of the dock before falling down into the lake.

" _Ooh…!_ " Many campers wince.

Nora and Sergio didn't hesitate to start howling with laughter at his misfortune. They did earn a grave glare from Keone, despite it going unnoticed by anyone. Joseph and April hurry over to hoist the dazed Sandslash back up as Yanna, still indulging in her book, levitates his suitcase out from the water.

"Quite the entrance, huh Dusty? Keh heh." Wes slightly chuckles.

"Did my suitcase at least make it onto the dock?" Dusty asks in a daze.

"Afraid not." States Joseph, displaying his dripping suitcase.

The Sandslash sighs loudly. "Of course…"

The two turn their attention onto the next Pokemon already walking along the dock. The Lilligant calmly and humbly walks her way to the host, reaching her hand out to him.

"Icelyn is very excited to be here, O'Callaghan, sir." She warmly smiles.

"What a gentle aura…" Wes comments as he accepts her hand shake. "Welcome to PDI, Icelyn. Enjoy your, uh, stay. I guess…"

"Thank you so much, Wes." She bows. She joins along with the others, earning a few blushing stares.

"Such a warm feeling from her…" Sergio comments looking her up and down.

"She radiates such a calming passion…" Sascha comments as well, taken back by the elegant girl.

"Quite the elegancy…" Smiles Momilani.

"..." Keone couldn't help but eye her as he slightly blushes, at least managing to maintain his serious posture.

" _Goodbai mishu ishuren!_ " The Lapras murmurs as she puts the Lilligant's belongings down from her mouth. "Have fun out here!"

"Thank you, Miss Vermillion! Icelyn will be sure to win for the homeland!" Icelyn waves back.

Suddenly, the dock jolts and shakes everyone. Now the attention turns onto the next camper: an Ursaring. She tosses her ragged suitcase into the pile, crossing her arms as she glares intensely at the host.

"Are you Wes?" She raises a brow.

"The one and only." The host says proudly. However, he drops his bravado right as the Ursaring stood face to face, now giving him a grimly glare.

"Since I'm gonna be here dealing with your BS, just remember that when you poke a bear, _you'll get the mauling of a lifetime._ " She glowers.

She huffs and picks her stuff back up and joins the others.

"Can't wait to see how she blows it here." The host snickers to himself..

"Meh. I'm not too interested in finding out..." Someone speaks amidst the group.

"...did somebody here change their voice?" Torvald asks, looking around.

"GAH!" Sergio jumps. Next to him was a Lombre laying on his side, snoozing away. "When the hell did you get here!?"

"Came when Dusty almost split like a coconut." The Lombre opens an eyelid. "He was too nervous at the pick-up spot to notice he rode onto my Lapras…"

After letting out a long yawn, he returns to snoozing away.

"...are we expected to treat this so casually?" Wheat asks April, to which the Zangoose could only reply with an unsure shrug. The next contestant's a little Dedenne. He hops onto the dock with his suitcase quickly thrown after him.

"Bye, bye!" The little rodent waves to the Lapras.

"Take care little buddy!" The Lapras smiles before swimming away.

"Next is… Fynn!" Wes introduces.

"Hello everyone!" Fynn waves. "Thanks so much for having me here, Wes! I can't wait for the best summer ever!"

The Dedenne merrily hums along as Wes tosses his suitcase over to the pile. As he walked along, he gave everyone a wave and a smile, earning him a few light greetings and waves back.

"Quite the cutie." Comments Momilani.

"Such positivity is certainly welcome in a competitive environment." Giggles Icelyn.

Fynn takes his spot, standing nearly underneath Keone.

"Hi ya!" Fynn greets the wolf, giving him his tiny energetic wave.

" _Pssh!_ _Look at that adorable big bro, little bro duo over there._ " Nora whispers to Sergio.

The two start snickering to themselves. The embarrassed Lycanroc diverts his attention somewhere else, lowly growling and heavily blushing. Meanwhile, the next camper was arriving.

"Good morning Wes." The Prinplup greets, rolling her suitcase besides her.

"Mornin' Alexandria. I take it your ride was nice and peaceful?" Wes asks, shaking her fin.

"It was quite relaxing. Since this summer will be intense, it was very nice to get a brief moment of peace." She calmly smiles. "Very nice to be here as well."

The Prinplup goes off to join the group as the next contestant arrives. The next pokemon's a Mienshao; taking a gentle whiff of the island scent.

"My, my… what a complex aroma." She comments to herself. "Hello there Wes. I'm very grateful to have the opportunity of staying here."

"Welcome to your summer home, Celeste." Says Wes. "I'd take one last sniff of this place before we start if I were you. Once it begins, this place'll _reek_ of big egos and sore losers."

"Aroma always finds itself the right fragrance, so I won't be fretting now. Nature will provide us plenty for the summer." She smiles before taking her spot.

The host just shrugs. "Wise words, I guess…?"

A Gallade is the next contestant to arrive. He hurries over to the pile to put down his belongs before returning back to the host to eagerly shake hands.

"Sweet to meet, Wes! It's super rad to get to meet someone so famous!" He greets energetically.

"Thanks Deon! It's good to see some appreciation like that." Wes responds proudly. "So, uh, how's your _evolution_ treatin' ya?"

The Gallade chuckles and blushes. "Y'know… pretty cool I guess. Don't get the Kirlia jokes anymore. Heh heh heh…"

"Good to hear it. Go ahead and get yourself comfortable with the others. We still got more pokemon on their way." States Wes. Deon takes his place next to Alexandria who's raising a brow at him.

"Evolve _after_ signing up?" She asks.

The Gallade blushes. "Heh heh, yeah. Almost got cut from makin' it on the show. But lo' and behold, I get to be here! So it's all good!"

"Mhm… Very well then." Concludes the Prinplup.

Arriving next is a Meowstic. She only has a small bag with her as she steps up to the host.

"Welcome Bonnie. You totally ready for summer here?" Asks Wes delightfully.

"Don't know." She nonchalantly responds.

"Cool, cool…" He says as she walks over to the group. "Huh. Just like her bio, she really is emotionless."

Next to arrive, a Geodude floats aboard the dock. However… his appearance seems significantly different than the typical Geodude.

"Welcome to the island, Hugo!" Greets Wes. A few pokemon were taken back by his distinctive appearance.

"Alola!" He greets sternly. "Um… or just a simple 'hello' here right?"

"What's up with those brows of stone, dude?" Nora raises a brow.

"And how do you have, like, little hair thingies?" Fynn tilts his head.

"Um…" The Geodude hesitates. "Hugo is from Alola. Over there, we're a bit different. S-Sorry for the confusion…"

" _Really_ different..." Dusty eyes him nervously.

"All right; enough, enough." Wes butts in. "Let's just keep rolling in the contestants, so scoot back and stand by, Hugo."

"Hugo understands!" The Geodude, oddly enough, says with gladness. He hoists his suitcase with one arm and joins the others.

With the next Lapras arriving, she calmly lowers her neck down, placing a suitcase down with a small green pokemon quickly hiding behind it.

"Oh, so it's _this_ chick then." Wes points out. "Next we have Rosie!"

The Budew barely peeks from behind her luggage, anxiously looking over the group.

"What's the little oddball doing…?" Paisley questions, tilting her head curiously.

"It appears this girl is afraid of us." States Sascha.

"Tch. She needs to hurry the hell up..." Kimber murmurs to herself.

"Oh! I got it, guys!" Deon speaks up, politely walking over to Budew. Right as he approaches her, she retreats fully behind the suitcase now out of sigh. Deon smiles and squats down.

"Hey there." He calmly waves to her. "We can tell you're scared, so I wanna help out. Can I walk you over there? I'll make sure you don't have to worry about anyone bothering you, 'k?"

The Budew hesitates in peeking out again. Momentarily, she comes out with her head down and stands aside his leg.

"Coolio! Let's go!" Smiles Deon. He picks up her suitcase and the two walk over to join the other.

" _Wimpy lil' baby, isn't she?_ " Nora rolls her eyes and whispers as Deon and the Budew walk past her. However, she was slightly taken back when she notices she whispered to Alexandria instead of Sergio.

"I'd watch your mouth before it bites you down." Alexandria calmly comments before looking away from her. Nora only rolls her eyes once again and crosses her arms in annoyance.

"It is quite the shame to see conflict already begun sprouting amongst us." A Lucario sighs, just arriving. He wears a large traveller's backpack looking prepared for a long distant journey. "A rare opportunity this island has provided for us all to bond has come into motion, so let us establish a basis of respect, serenity, harmo-."

"All right, we get it, just _shut_ _it_." Wes frowns. "Just go wait by the others, hippie boy."

The Lucario can only sigh as he does what he's told, joining up with the group. A Krokorok is the next camper to arrive. He slings his packed straw sack over his shoulder as he walks onto the dock.

"...reckon this'll be my summer getaway?" The Krokorok smirks, raising a brow.

"You got it, Bronco. Of course, being the outdoorsman yourself, you'll likely get quite comfortable here."

"Yes, sir." He nods. "I'm rootin' for a relaxful summer here. Well, I hope it'll be, anyways."

He goes to place his sack in the large pile of luggage before taking his spot.

"Howdy, everyone." He greets.

" _How-dy_!" Torvald and Fynn greet back mimicking him in excitement. Bronco awkwardly chuckles back in amusement.

The next pokemon to arrive is a Persian. She walks up to the host rather graciously with her luggage strolled along by her tail.

"Good morning to you, Wes." She greets. "It is most pleasurable to be here to earn such a grand fortune for a 'mon of my age. I'll certainly be looking forward to the summer here." She smiles with slight deviancy before joining the others.

"Quinn's just straight to the point, huh. Maybe useful, maybe her downfall. Can't wait to see." Smirks Wes.

" _Definitely_ gonna stay away from her." Kimber comments.

"B-But I'm sure she means really, really well!" Wheat says to her.

"Hugo also sees no problem with her! Then again… Hugo did just blank out for her arrival." Hugo adds sheepishly. Kimber just briefly raises a brow before deciding to keep to herself.

The next pokemon is a small size Gourgeist. She hops onto the dock but with no luggage in tow.

"Oh boy…" Wes pinches his nose in annoyance. "Everyone, meet… Muriel."

"Everyone… hello…" She creepily greets as she tilts her body, eyeing everyone in an odd fashion; even slightly drooling. Many of the other pokemon already step back from her uneasy nature. She doesn't bother introducing herself and takes her spot in the group.

"Hello…" She eyes Dusty besides her.

"H-H-H…" He stutters pale faced. Suddenly, he passes out and falls back, getting caught by Celeste. "Breakfast… I don't think you had some…" She shudders with a smile. Celeste exchanges a creeped out glance with Paisley.

"That's just actually psycho…" The Flaaffy whispers.

Torvald and Wheat poked their heads between the two. "She probably means well!" They say in unison; Torvald smiling but Wheat just seeming determined.

The final camper arrives; a Munchlax chomping down sloppily on a family-size bag of thick pretzel sticks.

" _Crunch, crunch…_ Hi ya." He smiles and waves, still chowing down.

"And as a cherry on top, famished little Leo joins us." Wes says.

"Ooh, a cherry. Always figured I'd be a nut instead." He says as he joins the rest.

"I think so too." Sergio rolls his eyes.

With the final Lapras departing, Wes proudly places his hands on his hips and nods.

"All righty then! Seems all you angsty teens have all come together." He smiles boastfully. "Being the maestro of this orchestra, I'll be conducting your brief campground tour. Now follow the host!"

* * *

The twenty-eight campers gather around the campfire pit, either taking a seat on a stump or simply choosing to stand around. Wes stands in front, holding up a list.

"Okay, new campers. Welcome to Camp Maranga Kee, on Maranga Kee Island! First off, let me just say congrats for being the selected suckers to compete here. As you know, to win here, you must overcome each obstacle we throw at you. Survive as the last one standing, bada-bing, bada-boom, you've just earned yourself the sweet, succulent grand prize of half… a million… dollars!"

Many of the campers cheered to the last part; despiting frowning from the "suckers" part.

"It's gonna be a piece of cake and you know it Wes." Nora smirks, leaning back against her stump. Just as Leo opens his mouth to speak, Nora instantly hushed him. "No food commentary, short stuff."

"Here's how it'll go down." Wes begins to explain. "On any day or at anytime, a challenge will go down and all of you must participate. Two teams will be formed and put head-to-head in these challenges. The winning team, guaranteed, will be granted immunity, as the team who choked out must participate in our campfire ceremony. At the ceremony, the team that lost must vote someone off the island, and the sucker with the most votes stacked against them may never, _ever_ … return to this island.

"Such cruelty..." Thurman shakes his head.

"Don't like it, don't join it." Kimber grunts.

"Moving on," Wes continues, "let's get you guys set you up in your teams. And just so we're clear, both teams _must_ sleep in their own cabins."

"Will the living arrangements, perhaps, be co-ed?" Quinn asks. "It'd be quite the… _situation_ , to be put with certain pokemon around here." She seductively eyes back at Grey. The Houndoom sitting behind her blushes wide-eyed before scooting himself further back.

"Afraid not, Quinn. Both cabins are split to their genders accordingly." Wes eyes her suspiciously. "But now onto the teams! When I call your name, just go ahead and stand to my left." He pulls up the paper, eyeing it closely. " _Should've worn my contacts…_ " He mutters. "Let's go ahead and have the following come up: Torvald!"

The Braixen claps star-eyed before rushing over.

"...Kimber!"

The Ursaring grunts before making her way up.

"...Hugo!"

The Alolan Geodude just stares deeply into the grass.

"...Hugo, man, c'mon!" Wes yells.

Hugo quickly shakes himself. "Oh! Sorry Wes!" He floats over to join the other two.

"...Rosie!"

The shaking Budew hurries over and hides behind Kimber. The bear huffs but let's it slide.

"...Thurman!"

The Lucario smiles and calmly walks up.

"...Sascha!"

The Lycanroc simply nods and walks up.

"...Grey!"

The Houndoom walks around the whole group and joins behind the few Pokemon already there.

"...Bonn-"

Oddly enough, the Meowstic was already standing amongst them.

"Uh… Dusty!"

The Sandslash gulps and attempts to hurry over. However, he trips and ends up rolling over, colliding against Grey. The two rumble over and somehow manage to be stopped by the Gourgeist.

"Assistance…?" Muriel asks creepily.

The two were startled wide-eyed and rush back to the growing group.

"...speaking of the devil. Muriel!"

The Gourgeist shudders and smiles before joining herself.

"...Jude!"

The groggy Lombre just lazily slides himself over like a snail.

"...Celeste!"

The Mienshao politely bows before joining them.

"...Wheat."

The Phanpy wags his tail eagerly before heading over.

"...and Quinn!"

The Persian smiles to herself as she heads over.

"You fourteen batch of misfits will be titled… _**The Gallant Sharpedos**_!" Wes announces as he tosses Thurman a dark blue banner; rolling itself out and revealing a Sharpedo insignia.

"An honorable name, I suppose." He says.

"And for the next team, I'll need the following to stand by my right: Icelyn!"

The Lilligant quietly but excitedly claps to herself as she walks over.

"...Joseph!"

The Sawk nods and makes his way up.

"...April!"

The Zangoose pumps her arm in triumph before running over.

"...Fynn!"

"Yippie!" He shouts eagerly as he runs up.

"...Alexandria!"

The Prinplup simply stands up and walks over without a word.

"...Bronco!"

The Krokorok smirks, making his way up.

"...Momilani!"

The Primarina sighs in delight before heading over to the group.

"...Sergio."

The Machoke grins, crushing the rock he was just tossing up and down. Flinging the remnants to floor, he bolts straight for the group.

"...Paisley."

The Flaaffy smiles before skipper over.

"...Keone!"

The standing wolf just lightly growls to himself in annoyance before heading over.

"...Nora!"

The Sableye shrugs then joins the team.

"...Leo!"

The Munchlax yawns and dumps the last of his pretzels into his mouth before walking over.

"...Yanna!"

The Abra levitates a leaf off the ground and places it on the page of her book, closing it to leave her page bookmarked. She rests the book to her side before just simply walking over.

"...and finally, Deon!"

The Gallade grins as he runs on over to the group.

"And you bunch of hoodlums will be dubbed… _**The Diehard Wailords**_!" Wes announces as he tosses Paisley a light blue banner, unravelling to reveal a Wailord insignia.

"Quite the sloppy name, but a team's still a team. Hee hee!" The Flaaffy giggles.

"With the teams now arranged, let's get you teens settled down in your cabins for the summer." Wes says.

"Are the cabins, well, clean enough?" Asked Deon.

"And safe, if I may add." Alexandria speaks up.

"Safe? Definitely. Clean? Well… It'll depend on how much grumpy interns could achieve in just a few minutes… So have fun!" The host grins. Deon slumps over in defeat.

* * *

Wes brings the group to the front of the cabins; two decently built for certainly old cabins.

"Okay, listen up campers!" Wes yells. "The east cabin is designated for the _Wailords_. The west cabin's for the _Sharpedos_. We'll meet at the mess hall nearby in ten minutes for your brunch, so no slacking, _no snacking_." He glares at Leo who responds with a sheepish chuckle. "And one last note: the outhouse confessional is ready for use! It's right near the campgrounds so feel free to try it out!"

With that, the Blaziken walks off to the mess hall as the two teams split away into their respective cabins.

 **0000000**

" **Here in the outhouse confessional, our angsty competitors may share their juicy gossip with you, the viewers. Since we, the producers, are liable for any crud they say in here, we'll be sure to ensure they don't yell some really messed up stuff." Wes leaves off with a wink.**

 **0000000**

 **Deon enters the outhouse, immediately freezing with disgust.**

" **Oh, sweet Arceus!" He cups his hands over his mouth in disgust before rushing out.**

 **0000000**

 **Jude plants his head against the walls, letting out a yawn.**

" **Hopefully this show won't drain the little bit of energy I got." He blinks groggily. "...yawning in this air wasn't a good idea."**

 **Suddenly rapid knocks bang against the door.**

" **Hellooo?" Paisley calls out. "Sleeping** _ **tragedy**_ **? Other people gotta vent in here!"**

 **0000000**

 **Scooting into the confessional, the Flaaffy cracks her neck before smiling into the camera.**

" **Hi ya everyone at home! For our homestead, I'll bring back the winning cash! Just you wait! Lots of love and hugs!"**

 **0000000**

 **Torvald claps his hands above his head. "I'll make sure everyone here will have a good time playing the game! I gotta ensure there'll be no fighting whatsoever!"**

 **0000000**

" **U-Um, he-hello viewing w-world." Rosie weakly greets. "I-I don't talk much in person, s-so, I-I'll be sure to share my feelings in here…"**

 **0000000**

Deon and Dusty opens up the door first for the boys' side of the Sharpedos Cabin. Inside were enough bunk beds for the boys in the wooden room and just enough dressers for their belongings. The bunk beds only consists of a slim sheet, one cheap looking pillow, and likely a Bug Pokemon's nest by the way the place having dust everywhere.

"Ah jeez…" Deon grimaces. "My attic and basement are less dusty than this. Uh… no offence, I guess?"

"N-None… taken?" Dusty raises a brow before nervously wandering in. Just with a single step in and the Sandslash already slips off the floor and crashes onto his back. He only sighs being held back due to some of his quills lodging themselves between the floorboards.

"You good?" Deon asks.

"...don't think so." Dusty blushes.

Joseph walks in and looks down at the Sandslash. He sighs before reaching his hand out.

"I'll help you up; c'mon." Joseph says.

However, Keone stomps loudly up to Dusty and easily yanks the rodent up to his feet. The Sandslash froze in fear as the Lycanroc just sighs and walks by him.

"Quite the rude boy." Joseph murmurs. Deon just shrugs before heading further in.

Bronco, Fynn and Leo follow suit and enter the cabin. Fynn gasps in excitement when he sees Keone lying on a bottom bunk in the far corner. He rushes up and climbs up the wood halfway before smiling at the wolf.

"Do you think I can stay up over you?" He asks excitedly.

"...no one's gonna stop you." The Lycanroc mutters, rolling over to face the wall.

The Dedenne grins. "Thanks Keone!" He says right before climbing to the top bunk.

"Whatever." Keone mutters as he rolls towards the wall.

Deon walks over to a neighboring bunk. "Anyone, uh, wanna bunk with me?"

Leo shrugs. "I'll take your offer!"

The two exchange a gleeful fist pump. The Munchlax and Gallade slides their belongings under their beds before heading back out.

"If everyone doesn't mind," Joseph speaks up, "I'd prefer having a bunk to myself. I… wouldn't want to disturb others due to my, um... _squirming habit_. It's quite annoying, to be honest."

"No prob, Jo!" Deon assures as he walks out with Leo.

"We're good with that over here." Bronco says as he and Sergio stuff their belongings under a bunk bed.

"Don't give a crap too; just go for it." Sergio says without a care.

"...thanks."

In the girls side of the cabin, many of the girls uncomfortably watch on as Momilani and Paisley are already caught in a dispute.

"Your grounds on your claims are rather biased, deary." Glares Momilani.

"Deary? Your body may seem like it's rotting but I doubt you're even an adult." Paisley snickers deviously.

"I'm going to refrain from observing this." Alexandria comments as she steps out of the cabin.

"Insults towards looks? Quite the creativity fit for a mere child." Momilani glares further.

"To be fair, it's more understandable for a teen to be a childish than the girls who wants nothing more than to be a big, strong grown-up." Smirks Paisley.

"Immature, immature, immature…" The Primarina shakes her head.

"Coming from a kid who's trying to play grown up." The Flaaffy smiles proudly.

"For the love of…" Yanna mutters, interrupting her book read on her bed. "Knock it off. With attitudes like that, you're certain to be eliminated first."

The Primarina crosses her arms at the resting Abra. "Attitude? My manners were quite in check during our little debate."

The Flaaffy tilts her head at the Abra. "I didn't think I was being harsh. I'm talking back how I've always done it."

The Abra sighs before floating back on her feet. She bookmarks and shuts her book and heads out the cabin.

"Whelp. This cabin already blows." Nora frowns in annoyance as she walks out as well.

"Sooner or later, we'll be united as team." Icelyn comments as she follows her out.

"Same here!" April grins with her paws behind her head as she follows them out.

The two left inside the cabin exchange a quick look of their own scorn before heading out of their cabin.

In the Sharpedos' cabin, the girls were calm. Though Kimber seething directly in the center, cross-legged on the floor with her arms crossed, affected the whole atmosphere of the room. Running around her, a tearful Rosie flees as fast as her little feet would let her with Muriel creepily trying to catch her.

" _I just wanna say hi~!_ " She smiles creepily.

Grunting in annoyance, Kimber grips both of them by their heads and lifts them up, though the two were still trying to run in midair.

"You're quite the caregiver." Celeste smiles. This gets Quinn the smile rather snidely.

" _Shut it_." The Ursaring throws a sharp glare.

On one bunk, Sascha adjusts her sheets on the bottom bed with her teeth as Bonnie lays staring at the ceiling.

"Is your bed suitable for you, Ms. Bonnie?" Asks Sascha.

"It's whatever." Shrugs the Meowstic.

"Better than nothing, of course!" Smirks the wolf proudly.

At the boys side…

"Rock!" Torvald shouts excitedly reading his fist.

"Paper?" Hugo says unsurely as he readies himself.

"...scissors." Jude mumbles.

All the boys aside from Grey throw out their fists, asides from Wheat who throws out his trunk. Thurman and Jude keep their hands flat out for paper, Dusty and Torvald split their claws and fingers respectively scissors, and Hugo kept his fist in place for rock.

"Was Hugo supposed to change?" The Geodude raises a brow.

"What have you selected, Wheat?" Thurman asks the Phanpy.

"It's definitely rock!" The Phanpy shouts.

Barely true to his word, the edge of his trunk was slightly folded back in effort to make it rock shaped.

"Okay!" Torvald claps his hands together. "We've just decided bunkmates! But are you sure you don't want to bunk with someone?" He asks Grey.

However, his belongings were already placed on a bed with the Houndoom himself nowhere in the cabin.

"Guess that's a no!" Torvald smiles and shrugs.

Soon each camper finished settling into their rooms and waited outside the cabins. Bursting through the mess hall front doors Wes stretches his arms up high.

"C'mon in, campers! It's time to chow down!" Wes shouts.

"All right!" Leo pumps his fists before dashing to the mess hall.

"That boy's a walkin' cliché." Bronco shakes his head.

In the cafeteria, the teens were single file lined waiting for their food. The kitchen's metal shutters were closed though many clanks and rapid stirring noised from within.

"C'mon… We need to eat already!" Leo groans.

"Seeing how crap everything is, you know the food's gonna be crappy too, right?" Nora raises a brow.

"Food is food though…" He whines as he nibbles on his paw.

Nora just exchanges a bewildered look with Joseph behind her.

With a sharp and loud crash startling everyone in the room, even getting Dusty to leap into April's arms, the shutters fling open. From the other side of the counter, a Dusknoir glares gloomily at the campers. Everyone takes a step back in fright.

"Everyone, meet Lloyd. Former gourmet chef, drill sergeant, and various other occupations, but now most importantly; _your_ camp cook." Wes introduces deviously.

"Gourmet chef!? Jackpot!" Leo grins.

"Yeah. Just take notice on the _former_ part." Smirks the host.

Roughly slapping a plate onto the counter, a serving of mashed up foods of a small variety were today's meal. The slop's cold and grimy texture made many of them grimace.

" _Order up..._ " Lloyd growls.

Gulping, Leo in the very front of the line goes up and gets his plate of grotesque slop.

"Oh gosh…" He looks down at the food wide-eyed.

" _Move. Along._ " Lloyd glares from behind.

"Eep!" Leo yelps before running off to the tables.

One by one the campers were served the unpleasant gruel. When Momilani went up, she holds in vomit as her slop was given to her.

"I-I do not think this is safe for consumption." She says pale faced.

The Dusknoir glares at her just inches away from her face. "And _I_ doubt this sludge as well, but I also doubt that you'd like to help me prepare your meals with me back here for the rest of your summer."

Momilani glances behind him, seeing the horrifyingly cluttered, rundown state of the kitchen with various foods spilled everywhere.

"Um… I-I-I think I'll take my food then." She weakly smiles before heading off with her plate.

Approaching the counter next, April still held onto Dusty bridal style both still staring wide eye in fear.

"Can't serve you with your hands full." Lloyd says.

The two glance at each other before April drops his as she blushes.

"S-Sorry." She says sheepishly before taking a plate.

Dusty stands up and rubs his back as he raises a brow at the Zangoose walking away.

"Get your food. _Now_." Lloyd glares.

Dusty immediately tenses up and nods rapidly before running away with a plate. Nora comes up and snickers at the Sandslash.

"Hella dorky, right?" She chuckles. However, she turns to see the Dusknoir glaring down at her intensely.

"U-Uh, t-thanks for the grub! Heh heh…" She backs off.

With everyone served, the Pokemon were all attempting to eat their meals, but really the majority were just picking at their food.

"Ugh…" Deon grimaces weakly at his food. He looks over to Leo who's scarfing down his portion. "At least you're enjoying it."

"It's not that bad when you keep eating it!" The Munchlax grins with food chunks stuck in his teeth. Deon holds back from gagging at the sight.

From the Sharpedos table, Quinn sighs and rolls her eyes. "Of course that guy's the only one able to consume… whatever this is."

At the sound of a big gulp, everyone at the table turned their attention to the end of it. Grey was lapping up a large chunk of the food, calmly but shyly chewing his food. He pauses when seeing everyone at his table looking over at him wide-eyed.

"..." The Houndoom swallows his food and slumps over on the table red faced.

"...guess there's two?" Quinn eyes him in interest.

As the campers resume their attempt to eat their food, Wes stands in front with Lloyd smirking with his hands on his hips.

"Attention campers!" He shouts. "With your grub served, you'll now have the energy for your first challenge of the season!"

Leo spits out his food. "We're already having a challenge!?"

Across from him, Alexandria frowns as the chewed slop slowly slid down her chest.

"...it's a competition, after all." Her brow twitches as she wipes the food off her.

"Your challenge will begin shortly, so fill your bellies up and prepare for the first challenge!" Wes says before walking out with Lloyd.

"Huh. Is it just Hugo, or does nobody else know what we're gonna do?" The Geodude asks.

"I'm sure our challenge will be nice and easy." Thurman assures him. "It's only our first day here, of course."

 **0000000**

 **Thurman sighs. "For our first challenge, I wish we were given something lighter and wholesome and…** _ **not**_ **dangerous."**

 **0000000**

At the top of the cliff, Wes points down at the lake way below.

"For your first challenge, you'll be required to jump and catch a frisbee shot from afar, followed by falling down a thousand foot drop and into the lake. Modified with two high voltage rings for 'safety measures' of course."

"I think... I _really_ wanna go home." Dusty gulps.

 **When we return, the first elimination challenge will commence! Who will eat it and either get knocked out by our** _ **customized**_ **frisbees or get shocked by our electrifying rings down below? What's the total amount of drama we'll get on this island? Find out next time, on Pokemon… Drama… Island!"**

 **Author's Note:**

 **My wiki that's been empty and on hiatus will now resume with updates on all stories I make! Feel free to stop by and check it out!**

 **P.S. Adding a link to my profile doesn't work for some reason so for the time being you can find my wiki by searching:**

" **Alpaca The Writing Writer FanFiction Wikia"**

 **...though just searching my account name might just find it too. Once again, thanks for any support and have a nice day!**


	2. Such Unlucky Campers Part 2

**Hey! Ya!**

 **Welcome to the next chapter! I know present tense isn't a very popular method but I'd like to experiment with it just a little more! And for those who like having a list of the contestants, which I should've added last chapter (sorry about that!), here ya go!**

 **Gallant Sharpedos**

 **Torvald the Braixen: The Gullible Optimist**

 **Kimber the Ursaring: The Troubled Brute**

 **Hugo the Alolan Geodude: The Constantly Confused**

 **Rosie the Budew: The Timid Dreamer**

 **Thurman the Lucario: The Eco-Friendly Pacifist**

 **Sascha the Midday Lycanroc: The Literal Lone Wolf**

 **Grey the Houndoom: The Silent Treatment**

 **Bonnie the Meowstic: The Emotionless**

 **Dusty the Sandslash: The Anxious Klutz**

 **Muriel the Gourgeist: The Bizarre Weirdo**

 **Jude the Lombre: The Exhausted Sleepyhead**

 **Celeste the Mienshao: The Tranquil Meditator**

 **Wheat the Phanpy: The Naive Adventurer**

 **Quinn the Persian: The Needy Greedy**

 **Diehard Wailords**

 **Icelyn the Lilligant: The Sisterly Princess**

 **Joseph the Sawk: The Sheer Manipulator**

 **April the Zangoose: The Revved-Up Challenger**

 **Fynn the Dedenne: The Friendly Pipsqueak**

 **Alexandria the Prinplup: The Independent Tactician**

 **Bronco the Krokorok: The Farm Boy With Smarts**

 **Momilani the Primarina: Self-Titled Queen**

 **Sergio the Machoke: The Egotistic Muscleman**

 **Paisley the Flaaffy: The Cheeky Geek**

 **Keone the Midnight Lycanroc: The Secret Guardian**

 **Nora the Sableye: The Mischievous Thief**

 **Leo the Munchlax: The Comedic Glutton**

 **Yanna the Abra: The Dramaless Bookworm**

 **Deon the Gallade: The Positivity Checker**

 **And of course, our host and his sidekick: Wes the Blaziken and Lloyd the Dusknoir.**

 **Now back to adventure!**

* * *

Bronco peeks over the edge, looking down at the lake. Sure enough, two different sized metal rings were floating on the water, producing bursts of static.

"Ain't that a lil' dangerous for our first challenge?" The Krokorok raises a brow at the host.

"Meh." Wes shrugs. "Compared to some other challenges we have planned, this one lacks a real big, ecstatic punch! Getting zapped by a little electricity shouldn't hurt _most_ of you guys too badly."

Momilani and Alexandria both scowl at the host.

 **0000000**

" **This is** _ **absolutely**_ **not what I anticipated for." Momilani complains. "I expected the intensity to be caused by the childish drama, not some unsafe playtime activity. Will this show ever get serious…?"**

 **0000000**

" **This challenge… sounds like a ton of fun!" Gleams a star-eyed Torvald. "I know water sucks for fire types and being zapped is gonna sting, but I'm sure there's no real danger to it!"**

 **0000000**

"The team to go up first… will be decided by a nice and easy coin toss! It's the part I'll take it easy with since it's your first challenge, after all. Heh heh." He chuckles. "Now then, why don't we have… Bonnie and Paisley pick for their teams."

Paisley softly claps to herself as she skips up to the host while Bonnie simply walks over without fuss.

"Ready to test your luck?" Paisley asks.

The Meowstic shrugs. "Guess so."

"Alright you two… Magikarp or Pokeball?"

"Pokeball, please!" Paisley grins.

"... Magikarp then." Bonnie shrugs yet again.

"'Kay! Let's flip!" Wes says as readies to flip the coin. However he ends up flicking it straight into Dusty's eye.

" _Geow_!" The Sandslash cries out, falling back.

Wes runs over, bending down to check on the coin.

"And it looks like Paisley and the Diehard Wailords will be going first!" Announces Wes.

"Yippee!" Paisley gleams.

"Going first isn't an advantage, ya idiot!" Sergio frowns.

Joseph places a hand on his shoulder. "Just relax. The challenge isn't that difficult."

"Tch! Buzz off, dude!" The Machoke snaps before walking away. Joseph rolls his eyes.

"Okay, Wailords, listen up!" Wes calls out to them. "Here's the rundown of your first challenge: from the beach below, good ol' Lloyd will be shooting a frisbee from his 'custom launcher' which you'll be catching as you jump."

A few of the campers take a look down at the beach, seeing Lloyd standing around and wiping his large blocky gun with a cloth. Next to him is a cardboard box packed with frisbees.

"When you fall down to your likely demise," Wes continues, "there'll be two rings used indicate the two zones. Now the frisbee you catch is worth just one point. However, landing in these zones will multiply said measly point. The big zone will double your single, and that little hard-to-jump-through zone in the center, pretty much the bullseye, will make your point worth a total of five points!"

Fynn raises his hand. "What'll happen if we don't even catch a frisbee?"

"Easy. While you can still earn points just by landing in the zones, they'll be significantly worth less. Going in frisbee-less, the big zone will get your team one point while the bullseye is reduced to two."

"So that means if we just jump… it's still worth something?" Hugo asks unsurely.

"You got it!" Smirks Wes. "And remember, if you wanna chicken out then feel free to do so! Even though… you might just cost your team the win."

"But jumping into a lake doesn't even sound bad in general." Deon comments.

"True… But just imagine the, I don't know… _impact_ of that thousand foot drop, the _painful electricity_ you'll get shocked with if you touch those rings for even a second, or even the cheap frisbee that'll be shooting at you as fast as an _Extreme Speed_. But hey, feel free to risk the injury, which if severe enough, could get you booted _early_!"

Several campers become weary and exchange worried looks.

 **0000000**

" **Pft! Screw your dumb threats, Wes!" Scoffs Nora. "If it wasn't for that cash prize, I'd toss you over the freakin' ledge!"**

 **0000000**

"Now remember: the moment you jump, Lloyd will shoot a frisbee straight at you." Wes adds on. "Now with all those rules out of the way, Diehard Wailords, begin the challenge!"

"Woohoo! Let's do this!" Shouts April before running towards the ledge.

"Hmph." Grunts Lloyd from below as he aims his launcher. "Should've avoided these stupid challenges, Wes."

The frisbee launches out with incredible speed, aiming straight for April. Right as she leaps, she sees the frisbee and makes the attempt to catch it. Remarkably she catches it between her two claws and flips towards the water. A few of her teammates look over the edge to see as she makes directly into the center.

"Woah! And April starts off with a perfect catch and landing!"

The Zangoose arises from the lake, spitting out water.

"Now that was totally wicked!" April shouts as she waves her frisbee.

"Sweet! I wanna see if I can pull off a good score too!" Deon says enthusiastically. He runs and jumps off the edge, ready to catch the frisbee. However, the frisbee directly hits him in his stomach.

" _Doof_!" He clutches his stomach and falls down, landing in the big zone without holding onto the frisbee.

"Hah! Nice one, jack-waggon!" Laughs Nora.

"Dude just _ate_ _it_! Huh huh!" Sergio laughs along.

Next up, Leo glances over the edge before taking a deep breath.

"For the team!" He shouts. "I guess…" The moment he leaps the frisbee collides with his head, dazing him before falling straight down.

"WOAH WOAH WOAH!" He screams as he falls directly onto the big ring. He didn't noticeably get shocked due to his weight causing the large ring to flip into the air.

Deon, still swimming in the water, looks up and shouts in terror right as he tries swimming away. Landing back to its spot, the ring came back down and hit Deon over the head, sending him back down but the voltage visibly shocking him beneath the water.

" _Yeowch_ …" Fynn winces seeing his teammate's misfortune.

Nora bursts out laughing, slapping her knee in amusement.

"Man, this crap's hilarious!" She howls in amusement. "Hey Sergio, wanna stand by and keep watching this with me?"

"Nah. I'm gonna score a whopper for our team!" He briefly stretches before running off.

The Machoke catches the frisbee shot at him but could only manage to land in the bigger zone. Arising from the water, he slaps the water in frustration.

"Damn! I could've been hotter than that!" He fumes.

"Okay! Okay! Now it's my turn!" Fynn pumps his little hands before running off the ledge. Unfortunately, the frisbee misses him completely, making him land in the big zone empty handed.

"Aw, shucks. It wasn't even close to him." Bronco comments. Behind him, Keone lightly scoffs and rolls his eyes. However, the two turn their attention to Icelyn approaching the ledge.

"Icelyn is definitely going try this out too!" She smiles.

"Go for it, girl!" Bronco cheers on.

Keone just crosses his arms and blushes. Icelyn jumps off and manages to catch a frisbee.

"Yeeeeheeee!" She shouts in delight as she descends.

 **0000000**

" **That Icelyn is awfully jolly, I'll tell ya." Bronco smirks. "I'm certain she'll be a crucial asset to our team with that charm of hers."**

 **0000000**

" **Icelyn is loving this place! I'm certain my time here will be staying close to my heart forever!" The Lilligant smiles brightly.**

 **0000000**

With a small splash, Icelyn hits the water with her frisbee in hand. However…

"Hey, cute chick! You didn't even land in a zone!" Sergio shouts from the beach.

The Lilligant shoots up from the water and looks around her, noticing she's right outside the two rings.

"Oops! Sorry everyone!" She smiles and apologizes.

 **0000000**

" **Normally I'd chew a 'mon out for sucking, but I'll let this girl go." Smirks Sergio, blushing.**

 **0000000**

"Tch! I'd figure that only one of the losers could suck enough to not even earn a single point." Nora mutters to herself.

"...okay, you know what?" Bronco turns to her. "You and your smartmouth there is gettin' pretty darn annoyin'. How about showing your team a little support instead of bein' a fool?"

"Can't a gal just joke around as they wait in peace?" Smirks the Sableye.

The Krokorok glares at her before picking her up and holding her out above the water.

"H-Hey, hey! What're you doing!?" She shouts at him, squirming to get free from his grip.

"If you're bored of waitin', how about you just take the swim already?" Bronco now smirks at her.

"You better- Gah! Whatever, fine! Just let me down and I'll shut up! We cool!?" She shouts in annoyance.

"Guess so." He happily shrugs before letting her down. "By the way, if you're gonna be bad mouthin', why don't you be funny with it instead of havin' a kid's humor?"

The Krokorok steps away as Nora wipes off dirt from her arms, giving him a glare.

"Yep. Now I _actually_ hate someone here." She mumbles as she walks off.

"So? Who wants to go next?" Bronco asks. Though the remaining members stay silent.

"Well," Momilani breaks the silence, "I'm certainly not jumping. We're scoring enough points as it is so I'd rather not risk injury on such a petty challenge."

"Huh. So you're too sissy to do it?" Paisley tilts her head.

Momilani rolls her eyes. "I am declining to try this because I know better. This challenge is certainly going to hurt and no way am I willingly going to hurt myself."

"If everyone else is doing it, then how come Princess Garbage Mouth won't do it?" Paisley asks rather casually.

The Primarina tenses up. The rest of their teammates worryingly back from the two.

"...excuse me?" Momilani asks with an eye twitching. "I see no reason to speculate my mouth having any displeasing scent, but I can certainly see your own mouth talking up a foul stench."

"Teehee! You're trying too hard with your comebacks. A good one should be something like how I can describe why you're a real nuisance to everyone or how your looks are barely looking good." The Flaaffy continues to smile.

"I have no need for any childish behavior. And are you aware you're making us get off topic? It shouldn't be such a hassle to understand I'm choosing to refrain from jumping."

"But it shouldn't be such a hassle to make a decent comeback little miss-"

"Could you two shut up for a second? Hm?" Alexandria interrupts. "Paisley, _you_ don't want to jump either, correct? So could you please stop stalling and let the rest of us to make up the scores you two are going to cost us?"

While Momilani stands speechless, Paisley just shrugs.

"Sorry then. Good luck you guys!" She waves before walking away. Momilani just lowers her heads and follows her down the mountain.

 **0000000**

" **J-Just so you know, I don't always get so tense." Momilani says slightly blushing. "That delinquent has tainted my image. I hope others won't think too harshly of me…"**

 **0000000**

" **...is it just me, or did that exchange feel entirely boring?" Joseph asks.**

 **0000000**

The Sawk approaches the sighing Prinplup.

"I figured you were more of a bystander than someone who tries to break fights up." Joseph comments.

"...hmph. I was only getting annoyed by their antics. Nothing more." She responds before approaching the ledge. "Let's just keep this challenge going."

The Prinplup jumps off the ledge and attempts to catch her frisbee. She barely misses it but is able to land in the big zone.

"And with that, Alexandria scores another point for the Wailords!" Announces Wes.

Peeking over the edge, Yanna scratches her head in thought.

"Hmm. I guess I can manage." The Abra states before jumping. The frisbee misses her, but with her psychic abilities, she brings it towards her and holds onto it.

"Neat." She calmly says as she descends.

However, as she waits for her impact, she's oblivious to the fact her shadow looms directly onto the inner ring. Keone, one of the few watching from the edge, gets a bit wide-eyed before leaping off the edge, ignoring his frisbee flying by. Meeting midair, Keone quickly but roughly pushes Yanna further out. Taken back by the Lycanroc, Yanna spirals in confusion as she lands in the big zone while Keone lands directly in the center.

"Nice! You two just earned two points each!" Shouts Wes.

Yanna emerges, wiping the water off her face as Keone arises and shakes his drenched fur.

Yanna raises a brow. "And I suppose you pushed me because…?"

"You were in my way, that's why." Keone mutters before swimming away.

"...sure. Whatever." She comments before swimming along with him.

"Well, guess I'll give it a go." Bronco says before running off. Catching his frisbee easily, the Krokorok cannonballs straight into the big zone.

"Would you like to go before me?" Joseph asks.

"Tch. Just go. I'll head down after you." She frowns, crossing her arms.

Joseph cracks his neck just before running off. He manages to clutch onto the high speed frisbee and dive straight into the center zone.

"And Joseph hits the bullseye!" Announces Wes.

"Jeez, you're an annoying commentator." Nora comments as she approaches the ledge. Wes just rolls his eyes at the ghost.

"Forget the frisbee. I'm just gonna aim for the bullseye." She smirks.

She runs off the ledge and aims straight for the center. Her speed downward, however, wasn't enough and she collides straight into the center ring.

" _Gyah-ah-ah-ah!_ " She shouts in pain as her body violently twitches from the voltage. After her electrocution, she falls right into the center and floats on the water.

"What a day…" She comments in annoyance.

"And with that, the Diehard Wailords are done! Earning a total of… a lot of points, probably!" Wes announces to the other team. "Now let's see if you Gallant Sharpedos can top whatever their score was!"

"Oh boy! Here we go!" Torvald shouts excitedly.

The Braixen rubs and pats his cheeks eagerly before running off. He pulls the stick from his tail and catches the incoming frisbee with the split end of the stick. He grins as he falls straight into the big zone.

"All right, all right. Let me at this." Kimber twirls and cracks her wrists menacingly. She jumps onto the edge, then leaps out and grabs herself the incoming frisbee before falling right next to Torvald.

"Nice one, Kimber!" Torvald compliments right as she emerges.

"Whatever." She rolls her eyes as she swims away.

"I think I'll take a go at this too…" Muriel says creepily as she approaches the ledge. She jumps off… though suddenly she crawls right back onto the mountain top.

"What in the…? Why'd you come back up?" Quinn raises a brow.

"Eh. That jump's _pretty_ scary… It wouldn't feel so good going down that drop." The Gourgeist smiles as she walks towards the slope. "Do your best, teammates~."

The rest of her team just eye her in confusion as she walks back down the mountain.

 **0000000**

 **Muriel leans against her head against the "Hmm… It** _ **was**_ **kinda amusing to ditch the challenge. Maybe I should hold back some other time. I have a nice team; I'm sure the team can pull through~."**

 **0000000**

Hugo floats over the edge, frowning at the sight of the drop and what awaits below.

The Geodude sighs. "Hugo doesn't think he can do this."

"How come?" Thurman asks.

"Hugo will likely just sink and have trouble getting out. It's also doubtful Hugo could easily jump far enough. I would like to help out in the challenge, but… water doesn't work so well with me." Hugo explains. "Sorry everyone. Hugo will be sure to be of great use in the next challenge!"

 **0000000**

" **Hugo regrets his decision, of course, but water doesn't quite, well, work for me…" He blushes as he clenches his fist in shame. "Hugo… would not like to talk about it."**

 **0000000**

The Geodude floats away in defeat, earning a sigh from Thurman.

"It can't be helped. After all, life will always provide difficult challenges in dire times." Says the Lucario.

"I'd stay focused on the _show's_ challenges, Thurman." Quinn frowns.

"Sure thing! Let's do this!" Wheat brightens up, wagging his little tail.

"Wasn't really talking to you… but go for it Wheat." She shrugs.

"You got it!" He nods.

The Phanpy curls up and rolls out, tumbling off the cliff. He unfolds himself to catch the frisbee but the disc ends up hitting him in the gut, knocking the wind out of him as he falls straights down. He plops in the big zone, rising up short on air but nonetheless alright.

"I… d-did it!" He weakly calls out.

"Please. Allow me to take the next jump." Celeste offers as she steps up.

She leaps far, whipping out her fur sleeves to catch her frisbee and dive straight into the center.

"Wow…" Dusty gawks.

From behind, Jude eyes flutter open. He rolls his eyes rather late then approaches the ledge, taking a brief look at the lake below.

"Meh. I'll go after a few more." He shrugs before groggily stepping back straight into his nap.

Bonnie walks up the ledge next, not bothering to check before doing a simple jump off the ledge, ignoring her frisbee. Surprisingly, she manages to land in the big zone.

"Come along, Dusty." Thurman nudes his shoulder. "Let's go earn our team some points!"

The Lucario jumps off, easily retrieving his frisbee and landing straight into the big zone. Looking down, the Sandslash gulps.

"N-Now or never, the saying goes…" He fidgets with his claws.

Taking just a simple step back, he trips on a rock and falls back on his quills. Groaning, he rolls back up, but rolls too hard and flips over the ledge.

"Aw craaaaaappppp!" He shouts as he lands outside the two zones.

From the beach, Nora cups her hand over her mouth and snickers.

 **0000000**

" **Yep. Definitely gonna mess with that kid. At least until he probably gets booted within a few of these episodes." Nora crosses her arms smugly.**

 **0000000**

"...did he make it?" Jude asks, peeking an eye open.

Rosie quickly runs over and glances down, running back startled.

"N-No…" She says weakly.

"That sucks…" The Lombre yawns before drifting off to sleep.

Shaking as he walks up, Grey quietly gulps as he stares down the cliffside.

"Jumping?" Quinn smirks, appearing aside from him.

Startling him, the Houndoom jumps up in fright only for him to jump away from her and off the cliff. Before his descent, the frisbee launched by Lloyd somehow manages to hit him directly in the mouth, letting him bite down, confused, as he falls straight into the big zone.

Quinn calmly chuckles to herself before running off the cliff, catching her frisbee and managing to hit the center.

"Hm. So which of you will depart next?" Sascha asks, turning to her remaining two teammates.

"Eep!" The Budew cries before ducking behind a rock that barely hides her body.

Jude yawns and scratches his chin, looking at the Lycanroc with only one eye open.

"We got a lotta points, right? Guess I don't mind giving it a go." Says Jude. The Lombre lazily rolls himself off the ledge, being another to ignore his frisbee and doesn't even come close to hitting a zone.

Sascha shakes her head before raising a brow at the Budew. Starling her again, the Budew sweats and trembles before running towards the cliffside. She quickly trips on a pebble, sobbing softly as she gets back up and starts running again. She barely manages a jump and misses her frisbee completely as she falls, missing the big zone. The Lycanroc just heavily sighs.

Snoring away, before being abruptly awaken by the wolf, Wes groggily takes his sunglasses off and steps up from his short foldable chair.

"Oh damn… Guess we're done to the final contestant…" Wes says, rubbing his eye. He picks up his megaphone and flips it on. "Alright campers, we're down to the final jumper! Her jump may just decide the game winner!" He shouts to the campers below.

"What the hell is the score, anyway! I didn't hear you counting!" Sergio yells back.

"Yeah. It went over my head. My bad." Smirks Wes. "But I'm sure the camera crews were keeping count, or something like that. But all I know is that Sascha's jump could determine the winner! So… let the final leap of faith commence!"

Sascha, last contestant remaining on the cliff, glares at her path and scoffs.

"With the power within, I will harness my courage and win this!" She declares. She steps back, takes a deep breath, and bolts for the ledge.

 **0000000**

" **You know, when I saw her take that jump, I guess I just thought to myself… 'We're boned.'" Leo smiles.**

 **0000000**

Sascha jumps and easily bites onto her frisbee, getting her team to shout in support as the Diehard Wailords seem weary of whether or not she could make it.

 **0000000**

" **But after her fall, I felt like I myself was given a** _ **burst**_ **… of** _ **energy**_ **!" He grins and cackles.**

" **Yeesh. That joke sucks, man…" Bronco says from outside the confessional. Leo chuckles sheepishly at the camera.**

 **0000000**

As she dives down, she heads straight for the center zone. Overshooting it, however, causes her to hit the inner ring. Her body violently twitches out as she still bites onto her frisbee. When electrocution stops, she flops right onto the ring, groaning as she slides over the big zone.

"And Sascha only makes a two-pointer!" Wes announces, suddenly appearing from an elevator installed at in the bottom of the cliff. "And with that, the Gallant Sharpedos earn a total of…"

 **Gallant Sharpedos: 22**

"...twenty-two points! And as for the Diehard Wailords, they finished their jumps off with…"

 **Diehard Wailords: 24**

"...a grand total of twenty-four points! The Diehard Wailords win the first challenge of the season!"

The Wailords all cheer in their own ways as the other team hung their heads low, except…

"Way to go you guys! You've earned it!" Torvald gleams as he bounces up and down with Paisley.

"Oh, wow! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Paisley giggles jumping up and down with him.

Kimber growls and walks over, grabbing Torvald by his ear fluffs like a rabbit's ears and brings him back over to their team.

"Don't cheer for the other team, dumbass." She glares as she drops him back onto his feet. "Since _we_ lost, we're stuck kicking someone out. Remember?"

"Oh yeah! Whoops…!" He scratches the back of his head sheepishly yet still smiling.

"Attention Diehard Wailords!" Shouts Wes. "For your first victory, I figured you'd like to celebrate it, so tonight, your team will get… a wicked hot tub party with unlimited snacks and a boombox to kick your party going!"

 **0000000**

" **Hell yeah!" Shouts April.**

 **0000000**

" **For such an odd victory, it feels nice to be rewarded." Momilani smiles proudly.**

 **0000000**

" **Darn. I actually would've enjoyed soaking in a hot tub." Says Jude.**

 **0000000**

"And as for the Gallant Sharpedos, I'll see you losers later at the elimination ceremony." Says Wes before walking off with Lloyd.

"Aw man… A hot tub party would've been so much fun." Complains Wheat.

"Eat it suckers!" Sergio yells back as his team head off to their prize party.

"Hey! Shut the hell up!" Kimber yells back, though Sergio just laughs and walks away. Kimber crosses her arms, clenching her teeth seething.

"What do we do now?" Asks Hugo.

"We have to figure out who we're booting off, that's what." Quinn says, turning her back to them.

Torvald claps his hands over his head smiling. "I have an idea! Let's all sit, right here, and we can discuss this together! Maybe we can settle this vote in a good way!"

"While I'd love to do that, I'm afraid there's not much fun to this." Says Celeste.

"That's okay!" Smiles Torvald. "Sure, we're voting someone off, but discussing it as a team could really be helpful, right?"

"Yeah. I doubt it." Kimber scoffs before walking off, along with a few others. Left with Torvald, Celeste, Wheat, Rosie, Grey, Muriel, and Hugo remain behind.

Hugo places his hand on the Braixen's shoulder. "Hugo doesn't understand what we're doing, to be honest,, but he'll definitely help you out!"

A few other nods collect, getting Torvald to grin brightly.

"Okie-dokie! Let's do this, then!" He gleams.

 **0000000**

 **Celeste sighs. "As much as I don't want to say it, voting someone off can't possibly be positive for us. But for Torvald's optimism, we'll work it out."**

 **0000000**

When night time hit, the Gallant Sharpedos await in front of the lit campfire. Holding up a plate of thirteen variously colored marshmallows, Wes smirks as he tosses his own up and down.

"Sharpedos, welcome to your first elimination ceremony!" Introduces Wes. "As you know, one of you will be going home tonight, and guess what? The sap booted can never, ever, and I mean _ever_ … come back. Meaning, you're cut for good."

Dusty and Rosie gulp and exchange worry glances.

"On this plate are stale, but berry-flavored, marshmallows!" He says before flicking his marshmallow into the fire. "I wouldn't want to try 'em. I think their bag was promoting some movie about, like, Lugia and those other other special birds."

"That movie's as old as me…" Wheat grimaces.

"Whatever. Your votes are set, so let's get right to it!" The Blaziken grins. "It's simple: I call your name, you get up and take one of these. No name called when there's no more, BOOM! You're outta the game. So, without wasting anymore time, the first berry marshmallow gets to go to… Quinn."

The Persian smirks, going up and swiping her treat with her tail.

Wes smirks and taps his chin. "For the next one… Torvald, come on up."

The Braixen grins and claps before going up.

"Let's see… Celeste, Thurman, and Bonnie; c'mon up." The host continues.

Celeste and Thurman exchange pleased smiles as they walk up. Bonnie shrugs before walking up.

"Wheat, Grey, Kimber and… Sascha; also safe!" Says Wes.

Wheat and Sascha simultaneously nod proudly before getting their marshmallow. Kimber scoffs as she gets up from her tree trunk. Grey just gulps before nervously walking up.

With five contestants left, and only four stale marshmallows left, Wes smirks as he watches the pressure getting to them.

"B-Bottom four?" Murmurs Rosie.

"Afraid so." Muriel smiles, flipping her bang.

"Ah crap…" Dusty fidgets.

"Hugo does not like this…" Hugo gulps.

"Huh. Bummer…" Jude says, scratching his back without a care.

Wes picks up another marshmallow. "Next to get one will be… Rosie."

The Budew lets out a shaky sigh before hurrying up to claim her treat.

"Hugo… and Dusty. Come get your marshmallows." Wes continues.

The two brighten up from their seats and rush over to the host. Still seated, Jude and Muriel remain.

"O-Oh. Down to us two, huh?" Jude sweats a bit.

"Ooh~ I wonder what's gonna happen." Muriel arches to her side, eyeing the Lombre.

"Okay, final two, we're down to the last sugary, likely sour, treat of immunity.."

From the safe group, Dusty chews on his marshmallow only to immediately spit it back out. He whines as he scrapes his tongue with his claws.

"... _definitely_ sour treat of immunity. Heh heh." He chuckles. "So, the one who will be staying tonight is…"

Jude starts to sweat a bit more, scratching his chin due to worrying more. Muriel shutters in her own odd delightful anticipation.

"...Muriel!"

Muriel chuckles creepily before walking up to the others.

"Jude my dude, not really sorry to say, but you get the boot tonight." Says Wes.

"D'awww." The Lombre groans. "Sucks to be me, I guess…"

Jude tiredly walks down the dock to his awaiting but rotting boat.

"Ew…" He grimaces.

 **0000000**

" **Of course many of you have seen this before, but hey, it's a real nice tradition." Says Wes, crossing his legs. "Here at the end of each elimination, the camper booted off can say their final words before they're gone for good. So enjoy!"**

 **0000000**

" **Man… Guess I should've put some more 'try' into this competition. Oh well…" He sighs.**

" **Wes told me… I should share who I wanna win this thing. If I had to choose… Probably… Proba…" He starts to say before snoozing off.**

 **0000000**

With Jude riding away, the elimination ceremony comes to a close. Majority of the Gallant Sharpedos wave goodbye to the sleeping Lombre.

"Didn't think you can think outside your, well, 'pure mind' Torvald." Celeste says to him.

"The poor guy really seemed tired! He'll feel a whole lot better back at home!" Torvald smiles.

"So you guys were the ones planning on sending him home?" Kimber asks.

"Yep! Together, we agreed on the 'verdict!' Hee hee!" He giggles.

Quinn raises a brow in interest.

 **0000000**

" **They've pretty much acted as an alliance, though only for a moment." Says Quinn. "Seeing it's only fitting, I should settle into my own little meddling group. Or at least something that will benefit me. Let's wait and see…" She leaves off with a wink.**

 **0000000**

" **Hmm." Joseph thinks for a moment. "If I'm going to be here, I'll need a 'personal squadron' of sorts. I believe it's time… to begin manipulating the game. Mh hm hm…" He chuckles to himself.**

 **0000000**

"With that folks, the first camper is outta here!" Wes says standing on the dock. "A bit expected, a bit not. Huh Lloyd?" He asks nudging his supposed friend.

"The only thing I want to expect is either me or _you_ leaving." He grunts before phasing through the dock.

"For someone who cooks a mean meal, he sure is a mean deal." Wes smirks. "With one down, and a crap load more to go, who will make it out victorious and who else will get their behind kicked out of here! Find out, on the next episode, of Pokemon! Drama! Island!"

* * *

 **The first elimination is complete! The chapter's a bit shorter than I would've wanted it to, but hopefully I'll feel more determined the more I go on! Thanks so much for sticking by and reading this! Until next time!  
**

 **See! Ya!**


	3. Dumb Dares Deemed Dangerously Cliché

**Hey! Ya!**

 **It's been awhile without any updates, so sorry about that. Long story short, too many distractions, but now I'm free again to write this out! I'll also try to see if I can start posting updates on the wiki. Whelp, thanks for sticking around! Now back to adventure!**

With the faint tweets of bird Pokemon and the sun barely rising to provide some light over the camp, the morning has only just started. All the campers remain asleep, except one particular 'mon. April kicks her cabin door wide open, taking a strong whiff of the outdoor breeze.

"Ah…" She sighs. "Weather is just _perfect_ for me!"

She stretches herself out in a rush, hyping herself up for her morning routine.

"April…?" Deon groggily asks as he peeks out his cabin door. "What're you doing? The sky's more dark than bright…"

"I'm about to depart for my killer routine. Want in?" She asks, arching her back stretching.

The Gallade pauses for a moment before shrugging.

"If it's your workout, I'm sure I can manage." He tiredly grins. "Wanna tag along, Leo?"

Snoring and rolling out the doorway, Leo scratches his belly with his eyes shut.

"Nah… I'm gonna… grab a snack… instead…" He murmurs before rolling down the steps.

Deon tiredly smiles and rolls his eyes. "Just me then. Let's head out then!"

"Gotcha!" She winks. "Follow my lead! We got a whole two hour regimen ahead of us!"

"...two hours?" He tiredly smiles, eye slightly twitching.

 **0000000**

" **Every morning I gotta rev myself up for the day!" April grins. "It's gotta have a quick 5k run, some tree climbing, rock smashing… I'll pretty much use whatever I come across!"**

 **0000000**

Lloyd drives up to the two cabins in a jeep along with Wes, who's in the passenger seat leisurely sipping on a mug of hot coffee.

"Every morning, I gotta have my cup of joe." Wes smiles before quickly chugging down his hot coffee and tossing the mug away. "Man, it's great to be fire-type! Anyways, did you prepare my 'wake-up kit?'"

Lloyd sighs and hands a big suitcase to Wes. He phases away through the ground as the host opens it up, retrieving a megaphone and an air horn. He clears his throat and puts on a pair of noise cancelling ear muffs. He snickers a bit before putting the air horn against the megaphone. He fully blasts it, causing a tremendously loud sound that thunders all over the island.

Unexpectedly, a frightened Dusty crashes out through his cabin window and flops onto the dirt before scrambling to run away.

"Dusty! Where are you going!?" Wheat yells from the window, dazed from the noise.

"GYAAHHHHHHH!" The Sandslash screams as he runs for his life, air horn still blasting out.

Just as he's about to run into the forest, Lloyd phases out from the ground and grabs the Sandslash by his quills. He keeps screaming and running in the air, which makes Lloyd's eye twitches as he scowls. He holds him up high then throws him straight into the ground, burying the upper half of his body. With the teen now silenced with his feet sticking out and slightly twitching, Lloyd sighs before hovering over to Wes. The host finishes blowing the air horn, chuckling to himself as he removes his ear muffs.

"Ha, ha! Good to be host!" He grins to himself, tossing his equipment aside.

Momilani busts her cabin door open, seething with an enraged glare at the smirking host.

"Wes! What is your problem, you psychotic scumbucket!?" She shouts, eyes red-veined with exhaustion.

"Hey! That insult didn't suck that much! Atta girl!" Paisley tiredly smirks.

"Ooh…" Momilani seethes, before tiredly groaning. "Just shut it, please…"

"What's with that there horn, man? We're tryin' to get some sleep…" Bronco crosses his arms, bags under his already dark eyes.

"Well, you're on a gameshow, you've got challenges to do while you're here, _and_ you're dealing with _me_. So… do the math, farmer boy…" Wes cockily explains. "Today is your next challenge of the season!"

"Aw! Come on…" Paisley complains.

"Hey, if you don't wanna participate, it's literally your loss." Wes shrugs. "Make sure you all meet at the beach besides the cliff in exactly one hour! So go eat some chow and shower up! You guys _really_ look like garbage this morning."

Lloyd taps his chin. "Hm. I actually forgot to prepare breakfast."

"Just do it when you feel like, buddy. I'm fetching myself another hot cup of joe!" Wes says before driving off in the jeep.

"Couldn't offer me a ride, huh?" The Dusknoir grumbles before phasing through the ground once again.

Coming out from her cabin, Icelyn tiredly rubs her eyes.

"Has anyone seen April? Icelyn did not see her upon waking up." She tiredly asks.

"That Deon guy's also missin' out. Where'd they run off to?" Bronco raises a brow.

"Ooh, am I hearing the start of the first couple here?" Paisley cheekily asks.

They all turn to the subject of the matter: April coming in running out from the forest heavily panting.

"Oh man… this island's… perfect for exercise…!" She huffs, smiling.

Coming out from the forest as well, a sweaty Deon barely finds the energy to run out, before sliding down to the ground.

"How… could… she do… all those… _horrible…_ exercises…" He pants, seemingly ready to pass out.

"Yeesh. What'd you guys do out there?" Bronco asks.

"My arms… and legs… have twisted… in ways not possible…" He roughly makes out before planting his face in the dirt.

"Y'know, speaking of those in the dirt…" Bronco says before glancing over to Dusty.

With muffled groans, the Sandslash makes little to no effort in in attempting to pull himself out. Suddenly, he gets plucked out by someone. Snapping out of it, he shakes the dirt off him as well as spitting some out.

He groans as he dangles upside down. "Ugh… t-thanks-"

He gulps when he notices a deviously grinning Nora holding him up by his feet.

"'Sup, shrimp." She grins. "Since I'm seeing the opportunity…"

She starts shaking him violently, dizzying Dusty until a coin purse slips out from his quills.

"Nice! Lucky me!" She smirks as she eyes it.

"Ugh… Should've left in my suitcase like I was told to…" He sighs.

Nora drops his on his head, getting an "oof" out of him. She snickers to herself as she walks away tossing the coin purse up and down. However, her little thievery didn't unnoticed as she spots Joseph leaning against the cabin.

"This oughta be good…" She mumbles. "Listen man, either you rat me out already _or_ back out with some cash in your pockets."

Nora smiles deviously and shakes the bag of coins, though Joseph hardly lifts a brow to this.

"I could care less about petty thievery." He says, glancing back to see if anyone was near them. "Wanna take a guess why I'm here?"

"Oh, lemme guess: the alliance schtick, right?" She smirks.

"I propose you, Sergio, and I should come together and form a small but… _toxic_ team in secret. It's bound to get us further ahead."

"Tch. Shoulda took you for a fellow sleazy." She eyes him in amusement. "And why should I get in on this? You've seen how all that alliance garbage works out in these shows."

"The only television programs I watch are either mystery fiction or documentaries, so… no, I've not seen how these go about." States the Sawk.

"Seriously?" She scoffs. "The hell you even doing on this show then?"

"Winnings; just as everyone else is here for." He shrugs. "You certainly know an alliance will get you further. Now, you want in or not?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'll think about it." She boredly answers. However she approaches him and jabs her finger against his chest. "But to be crystal clear, if it came down to it, I'd save my own butt over yours. Got it?"

He calmly pushes aside her hand. "Fair enough. "But I guess… the same would go for me."

"You sure you just want me and Sergio in on this?" Nora raises a brow.

"Hmm." Joseph pauses. "Let's just wait and see how the three of us could handle for now. We'll try scouting someone else along the way."

"Works for me." The Sableye shrugs. "Whelp, I've got more crud to do. See ya 'round, ol' Jo."

 **0000000**

" **It seems I'll be in possession of my own cannon fodder." Joseph smirks. "Soon, the games will begin…"**

 **0000000**

Meanwhile, two girls walk and chat, chuckling together as they head to the mess hall.

"Say, Celeste." Smiles Quinn. "Anyone… _appealing_ catch your eye here?"

The Mienshao chuckles and lightly blushes. "Not at the moment. But young love is sure to bloom on this island. How about yourself?"

"There's a few with the potential here…" The Persian smirks as she eyes back at the cabins. "Guess we'll see what happens later on in the game."

Opening the doors to the mess hall, the two are taken back by the sight of a flour covered Leo snoring away on the floor, various marshmallows stuck to his body with many empty bags and sacks surrounding him.

"...okay but why?" Quinn asks in slight disgust.

"Ugh… wha…?" Leo groans, waking up.

"Um, Leo… Did you perhaps partake in, well, _all_ of this?" Celeste asks in concern, pinching and lifting up a ripped sack.

"Oh, yeah! I did! Heh heh!" He chuckles before sucking on his flour coated hand.

"Ew…" Quinn grimaces.

"I was so tired and hungry, I grabbed whatever held a lot of food in it! I'm a riot when hunger and sleepiness get mixed together." Leo explains. "Crazy, huh?"

However, the two girls are visibly panicking and stepping back as they look over Leo.

"What? Did I get something gross on the wall?" Leo questions.

Looking back, he freezes and gulps seeing Lloyd standing right behind him, cross armed and _furious_.

"I think we'll come for breakfast a little later." Celeste comments before the two step back outside.

"Uh, heh heh heh…" The Munchlax chuckles. He quickly panics and gathers up the flour, quickly molding it to a poor shape of a bouquet.

" _Flours_ for you? Heh heh…" However, the "flowers" quickly poof back to its powder state. "Uh oh."

Celeste and Quinn hurry back to their cabin as the screams of Leo echo throughout the campgrounds.

 **0000000**

" **Yep. The guy's dead." Quinn says, slightly amused.**

 **0000000**

On the beach, almost every camper stands around waiting for Wes's instructions.

"Okay, seems like almost all you angsty teens are here. Though I'm not seeing Leo. Or Grey. _Or_ Muriel. Jeez, even Lloyd's not here!" Says Wes, glancing around. "The hour's up! Where are they!?"

Without a moment's notice, Muriel comes crashing down into the sand. Despite her eyes spinning, she creepily chuckles to herself.

"Ooh~ I gotta try that again later."

Wes raises a brow. "So, uh, where'd you come from?"

"Wow, I don't even know, man…" She briefly spaces out.

Muriel lifts herself back up and rejoins her team.

"...kinda hope the camera crew _didn't_ catch whatever the hell she did." He says in annoyance. "Okay, there's still two missing."

Leo walks in, along with Lloyd, in a completely mortified state.

"Hey! Are you okay Leo? What happened to you?" Little Fynn asks.

"Just came back from cleaning… Nothing more…" Leo hoarsely says, completely horrified.

"Just gave him a taste of what the underworld's like for _menaces_ like him. Nothing more." Lloyd shrugs.

"Yep. You did that to me back in high school when my bucket of paint ended up on you on prom night. Hah hah…! It was terrifying." Wes says before shivering. "Anyway, now all we need is Grey! So where's the cowardly canine at?"

Grey comes walking in, covered in soot and just as terrified as Leo. He says absolutely nothing as he takes his spot with his group, his silence somehow feeling even more quiet than usual.

"Uh…" Wes glances over at Muriel, who's waving at the Houndoom.

 **0000000**

" **With a hollow tree trunk, some stolen gunpowder, and a Houndoom's breath, you can make your own cannon guaranteed." Muriel smiles. "It's nice to start the day off with that kind of bang, you know?."**

 **0000000**

" **...I'm going to stay away from her." Bonnie comments.**

 **0000000**

"Moving on…" Wes speaks up. "Today's challenge is easier said than done. From dawn til' dusk-"

"It's already passed dawn." Yanna points out.

"From _now_ til' dusk," glares Wes, "you two teams will be diggin' for dares!"

"Digging… for dares? How is that?" Questions Hugo.

"Splitting the beach for each team, you will dig around in hopes of finding dares in a bottle, meaning, you'll find glass bottles stuffed with a piece of paper reading out a dare." Wes explains.

"Woah! Sounds like too much fun!" April gleams.

"Then what do we do with those?" Hugo questions again.

Wes rolls his eyes. "It's simple, Hugo. You must complete the dare, and by doing so, you sit out as you wait for the rest of your team do find and do their own. So, the first team to have all of their members complete their dares wins today's challenge!"

"Are we allowed to _not_ partake in our discovered dares?" Alexandria asks.

"Of course. Come across a dare you don't like, you just toss the bottle to me or Lloyd. You're not allowed to give the dare to someone else to do. Only the one who discovers a bottled dare can do it." Wes elaborates further. "Of course, skipping or failing to beat your dare will keep you digging until you manage to beat one. Anymore questions?"

Hugo raises his hand.

"No good questions? Great! Off you go!" Wes declares.

The two teams quickly separate onto the beach, divided by a red streak across the sand.

"How bad did you make the dares, anyway?" Wes asks Lloyd.

The Dusknoir shrugs. "Who knows. I just contacted Jude from the-"

Wes slaps his hand over his mouth, eyeing cautiously around him.

"Hey. No spoilers for the campers, dude." Glares Wes.

Lloyd rolls his eye. "Whatever. I contacted Jude and had him write them since he's the only one not doing anything."

"Well, yeah; he's eliminated." Wes remarks.

"I just told the kid to go for it. All I did was bury the bottles." Lloyd finishes.

"Ooh, let's see what a guy can do from beyond the grave." Smirks Wes.

"Hey, hey!" Deon grins, wiping off the sand from his retrieved bottle. "I got the first one! Let's see…"

He pops the cork off and pinches the slip right out. He unfolds it and begins reading.

"' _Get slapped by three of your teammates. They must slap as hard as they can._ ' Ah crap…" He groans.

"You gonna do it?" Leo asks.

"Well… it's probably better than some of the other ones waiting. I'll do it!" Says Deon.

"But who to slap you…?" Leo thinks as he looks around.

"Hey! Alexandria! Can you slap me!?" Deon calls out.

"W-What?" She stutters in slight confusion.

"It's for the challenge!" He yells back, pointing at his paper.

The Prinplup sighs as she starts walking over. "Very well then."

"Oh! Could Icelyn help too?" Icelyn asks Deon enthusiastically.

"Yeah, sure!" Deon smiles. "Sure you're cool with slapping someone?"

"Icelyn has never laid a hand on somebody before, but since it is only a slap and for the challenge, she would like to give it a try!" She smiles.

"Hmm… Who else could help us out?" Deon taps his chin.

"Let's see…" Leo thinks, scoping everyone out.

The two pause, faces flushing, as they see Momilani come walking by, her hair unfolded beautifully before she readjusts her strings of pearls.

"Uh… I think I'll get slapped by her…" Deon looks at her in awe.

"Me too, for sure…" Leo comments along.

Icelyn tilts her head in confusion as Alexandria sighs and slaps her face.

 **0000000**

" **Getting so fascinated by one's beauty you'd be willing to get slapped by them? Attraction for a typical boy is quite… stupid." Alexandria comments.**

 **0000000**

"Okay! I'm ready!" Deon says before shutting his eyes, wincing as he readies himself for the pain.

"Then I shall go first." Momilani smiles innocently.

She raises her hand up, then smacks Deon across the face hard enough that he falls to the ground.

"Ow… Thanks Momilani." Deon groans.

"Anytime." The Primarina smiles before heading off.

Deon gets back up and readies himself again.

"Okay! Alexandria, let me have it!" He says.

"If you insist." Alexandria replies before slapping him hard with her fin.

Deon falls down to his knee, rubbing his cheek.

"Ugh…! J-Just one more. At least it's only Icelyn." He says to himself. "Okay. Go for it-"

Suddenly, Icelyn smacks him hard enough to send him crashing into the cliffside. The rest of the team stare right at the giggling Icelyn.

"Sorry about that! Maybe Icelyn should've held back a little more." She smiles.

Deon just gives a weak wave as he plucks his head out from the cliff. Groaning and with his entire head banged up, he heads off the beach.

"With that, the remaining amount of campers is fourteen to fourteen! Keep it going, campers!" Shouts Wes.

Lightly digging around, Muriel plucks a bottle straight out from beneath the sand. She takes out the dare and reads it.

"Hmm… ' _Get blasted by a Blastoise._ ' Fair enough." She shrugs.

"Yo! Intern! You're up!" Wes calls. A Blastoise nervously rushes out and looms over the Gourgeist.

" _I'm sorry…! I'm so sorry…!_ " He whispers to her anxiously.

Muriel just gives one of her creepy chuckles. The Blastoise nervously aims his cannons at her, then blasts her with a Hydro Cannon, sending her off the beach and landing straight into the lake.

"Mm. Kinda basic, but whatever. She got it." Wes shrugs.

"What'd I get?" Muriel asks, startling the host.

"What the- I just saw you get blasted into the lake! H-How'd you get here in, like, one second flat!?" He asks.

"Meh." She smiles before walking away.

"Yeesh, she's freaky." Wes shakes his head.

More time eventually passes, yet no other camper is able to find anymore bottles.

"Dammit! We're finding nothin' over here!" Kimber complains, angrily kicking up sand.

Wes pulls out his megaphone, relaxing on a beach blanket under an umbrella.

"Hey! When I said dig, I _really_ meant dig! So dig deeper, slackers!" He shouts before taking a sip of his lemonade.

"Ugh…!" A few Pokemon groan before continuing with their digging.

"Hey! Joseph!" April calls out, jumping into Joseph's digging hole. "I'm gonna give digging underground a shot! Want me to fetch ya a dare?"

"Why not just collect a bottle for the whole team then…" He mutters in annoyance.

"Get one for everyone? Shoot! I like your thinking!" The Zangoose grins. "I'll be back with your guys' dares!"

Joseph raises a brow in confusion as April dives straight into the sand and burrows her way through. Then it hits him.

 **0000000**

" **Seems someone didn't pay attention to Wes explaining the rules." Joseph sighs. "Will she be eliminated if my team loses? Probably. Let's see if she's got that kind of stupidity."**

 **0000000**

Digging around, Leo discovers a bottled dare deep within the sand.

"Yeah, boy!" He excitingly shouts. "Let's see… _'Brush your teeth with wet sand and lake water for thirty seconds.'_ Gross…"

Wes tosses a toothbrush to him then he heads to the shore. Some of his teammates watch on to see if he can manage doing it.

"G-Guess I gotta brush _sand_ floss. Heh heh…" He jokes nervously.

With disgust, he dips the toothbrush into the through the water and scoops up sloppy wet sand with the bristles. He opens his mouth and forcefully starts brushing his teeth, much to his dismay.

"That's just plain wrong." Bronco flinches.

Leo keeps scrubbing hard, gagging as he stains his teeth with wet sand. Almost finishing in time, Wes decides to butt in.

"Don't forget to scrape the tongue, dude!" The host recommends deviously.

Leo groans but follows through. However, the moment the muddy brush touches his tongue, he freezes and twitches for a moment before violently throwing up the wet sand along with a blast of flour.

"What the hell'd you just puke up!?" Sergio looks away in disgust.

"I'm gonna… take a break now… gus…" He groans before face planting into his thrown up sand and flour.

"I've found another one!" Momilani calls out from her dug up hole. She opens it and slides the paper right out. "' _Put a pacifier in your mouth and keep in on for the remainder of the challenge_ '!? Absolutely not!" She shouts, tossing the bottle behind her which Lloyd suddenly catches.

April, grinning, pops her head through the sand within the dug hole. "Why not?"

"April? Why in heavens are you burrowing under the sand?" Momilani raises a brow.

"I'm searching deep for bottles! There's definitely gotta be some buried like lost treasure!" Smiles the Zangoose. "See ya later!"

April takes a deep breath and returns to digging beneath the sand, earning a sigh of disappointment from the Primarina.

Over at the Sharpedos' side…

"Has anyone found any more bottles?" Thurman asks, digging around the sand.

"Ah! Hugo has just found one!" Hugo declares as he lifts himself out from his own hole. He cracks the bottle open, causing a few small shards to drop onto the sand, and reads out his paper.

"This one says… _'Give this slip to anyone else, earning them the right to not participate.'_ Oh! That's easy!" He grins.

Next to him on the other side of the dividing line, Paisley's digging around by just effortlessly brushing the sand with her orb-tipped tail.

Hugo floats over to her. "Here you go!"

Paisley blinks then reads the dare before smiling brightly.

"Ooh! Thanks for this!" She says and walks away.

" _Hugo!_ " Wheat complains, looking on with Kimber.

"Yes?" He raises a brow.

"You just gave that someone on the enemy team!? _Really_!?" Kimber fumes.

"S-Should Hugo have given it to a team member?" Hugo asks sheepishly.

Wheat groans as Kimber smacks her face sighing.

 **0000000**

" **Just how many morons are there in my team!?" Kimber yells, banging her head against the confessional wall.**

 **0000000**

 **Hugo crosses his arms and sighs. "Hugo had to make a mistake, of course… But now he will make up for it and give even more than everything he's got!"**

 **0000000**

Paisley skips over to Deon, humming as she takes a seat next to the Gallade who's carefully rubbing his throbbing cheek.

"Ooh, did you get rejected by some of the girls?" Paisley asks curiously.

"It was just my dare; had to get slapped around. Nothin' too bad." Deon grins.

"Hee hee! Your cheek is gonna look like a Voltorb's stuck to your head!" She teases, poking his cheek.

"I guess so. Heh heh!" Deon chuckles and blushes.

"Ah! Friends! Do not worry! Hugo has just found another one!" The Geodude shouts from his hole. "This one requires me to get _'catapulted straight into the cliffside!'_ Wait…"

Hugo sits in a large catapult and nervously watches Lloyd approach the lever.

Lloyd sighs. "Ready?"

"Um…"

He pulls the lever and launches the Geodude straight into the cliffside, lodging his body in a crevice without even a shout coming from him.

"Bro? You good in there?" Wes asks.

The Geodude weakly gives a thumbs up from his free hand.

"Sweet! Alright, he's good!" Wes smiles.

 **0000000**

" **Hugo doesn't like the challenges here very much…" He groans, holding an ice pack on his head.**

 **0000000**

"Found one." Bonnie says as she stares at her bottle. She takes the paper out and reads it. " _'...dumpster dive in the mess hall garbage for a snack.'_ "

The Meowstic is seemingly unphased yet her eye twitches a bit.

Above the dumpster, Lloyd holds her upside down over the it, though she's only blankly staring down at the garbage.

"Eat up." He says before dropping her in.

Bonnie remains silent without moving in the garbage for a moment before rising up with a bread loaf covered in various condiments and grimy foods.

Lloyd raises a brow at her, waiting for her to take the bite. She shrugs at the bread, calmly biting a chunk off the loaf. Yet again she her eye only twitches just a little. In short time, she chows the entire piece of dumpster bread down and wipes the remaining crud off her mouth.

"..could've been worse." She comments before calmly hopping out of the dumpster.

 **0000000**

 **Dusty walks into the confessional, pinching his nose as he eyes the toilet.**

" **Ugh… D-Did someone barf in here?" He asks in disgust.**

 **0000000**

Thurman digs around the sand and finds a bottle, raising a brow as he reads it.

"' _Get dragged by a speedboat for a whole minute?_ '" He says unsurely. The Lucario lets out a deep sigh. "For the team, I suppose…"

A moment later, Lloyd steers a speedboat with Thurman tied to a rope and skipping violently over the water like a thrown rock. A few of his teammates watch and wince at his challenge.

"PLEAS- DON- HUR- ME- ANY- FURTH-" He shouts as he keeps coming in and out of the water.

With the minute up, Thurman crawls back onto the beach, completely battered and soaking wet.

"I wish these challenge were more body-friendly…" He weakly says before passing out.

"Four Sharpedos done; only two Wailords done. Pick up the pace people!" Wes shouts over to the Diehard Wailords.

"I can't even find any more dumb bottles!" Nora shouts.

"Probably 'cause we got some bite-sized teammates who can't dig for anything." Sergio comments, glancing at Fynn.

The Dedenne pouts. "Hey! I can try just as hard as you!"

"Got one!" Torvald shouts, waving a bottle. He reads his slip of paper. "' _Steal an opponent's possession from their cabin and come back without letting it go._ ' Wow. That's _really_ daring…" Torvald nervously smiles.

He decides to bolt from the beach, running straight to the team cabins. He barges in the Wailords' cabin, glancing around quickly but curiously. He then spots a Rockruff plushie accessorized with a pink bow sticking out from beneath a pillow.

"This doesn't look too secretive!" Torvald smiles, grabbing the plushie and hurrying back.

Back on the beach, Keone groans and wipes the sweat off his forehead.

"Gimme a break…" He complains.

"Quit whining, ya dumb pup!" Nora frowns before resuming back to her own digging.

"Loudmouth." He frowns himself. He peeks out of his hole, spotting Torvald sprinting back to the beach. "What the…?"

Keone freezes when he makes out the object he was clutching on to. His eyes widen and his face heavily blushes just as he makes a run for the Braixen. Right before Torvald could take a single step on the beach, the rock werewolf tackles him harshly and the two tumble down together onto the ground.

"Yeowch…" Torvald groans, rubbing his head. He looks down to see the stuffed Pokemon is gone then notices Keone, pressed down on the ground, clutching onto it.

"Hey!" Kimber shouts, noticing the incident. "The hell you tacklin' him for!?"

"He jacked my crap, that's why!" Keone shouts back blushing.

He stands up and is about to offer Torvald a hand, but instead he hesitates and quickly withdraws his hand back.

"Careful who you steal from, got it…?" Keone murmurs before walking away to the cabins.

Torvald just smiles and waves as the Lycanroc leaves.

"What's his beef?" Kimber asks, glaring over at his direction.

"Did he have meat on him?" Hugo asks.

"Hm. That's what we call a 'ruffian,' Torvald. Stay wary around him.." Sascha cautions him.

"Aw, he's not truly mean! He means well!" Torvald says. "Anyway, I'll just keep digging for another one!"

 **0000000**

 **Keone flicks the sand of the bow then adjusts it, madly blushing.**

" **Ugh… Please don't kill me for soiling your gift, sis…" He groans.**

 **0000000**

Dusty digs around, finally discovering a bottle in the sand.

"Oh boy…" He says nervously as he gets his dare out. "' _Trip someone without letting them know it was you._ '"

The Sandslash gulps and glances around, finding someone who wouldn't beat him to a pulp because of the dare. He spots Wheat, but…

"Mmm… He's small enough to notice…" Dusty says to himself.

He spots Rosie, but…

"Ohh… I don't wanna hurt her." He groans.

Finally, he spots Celeste. He sighs but decides to try his dare on her. As she peacefully digs around the sand in her makeshift hole, he tiptoes shakily behind her. Just as he's about to sneak up on her, he steps right onto the glass Hugo dropped earlier; the shards crackling under his feet.

"YEOWCH!" He shouts, clutching his foot.

He hops around for a moment in pain before tripping and tumbling into the ditch, rolling straight onto Celeste. The two have the wind knocked out of them as they lay piled onto each other.

Dusty holds his aching forehead. "Ugh… S-Sorry Cel-"

Suddenly, her fur sleeves wrap around his neck, briefly choking him tightly before she tosses him straight into the air.

"I'M SORRYYYY!" He shouts as he flies straight onto the other side of the beach.

Celeste realizes what she's done and begins running after him.

"Oh my goodness! I'm terribly, terribly sorry!" She shouts after him.

 **0000000**

" **I don't like to admit it, but I** _ **have**_ **trained myself too much and made my reflexes too sharp. Sorry Dusty…" Celeste says sheepishly.**

 **0000000**

Back on their side of the beach, Celeste bandages up the embarrassed Sandslash's injured foot.

"Sorry for the trouble…" Dusty apologizes rather sheepishly.

"I'm the one at fault. I've ruined your dare and cost the team a point." The Mienshao sulks.

"N-Nah, it's okay." Blushes Dusty. "It was my fault… I guess? I don't know why there was broken glass in the first place…"

Celeste gently tightens the last bandage and lifts the Sandslash up.

"Okay. Shall we carry on then? I would like to make up for my mistake." She smiles.

"Y-Yeah. S-Sure thing…" He blushes before they split away to their holes, Dusty glancing back.

 **0000000**

" **I-It feels really cool when someone helps me out like that." Dusty smiles and blushes. "If I could manage to make a friend here, I hope it's someone like her."**

 **0000000**

Joseph retrieves a bottle from the sand, reading his dare out.

"' _Juggle hot coal around for thirty seconds._ '" The Sawk sighs. "Very well…"

A moment later, he takes steady breaths as he shakes his hands out while Wes comes in carrying a bucket of coal.

"Oh, this is gonna be good." The host smirks.

He tosses the coals high above Joseph then ignites them with a quick breath of flames. The coals drop down and Joseph begins to juggle them around albeit painfully.

"Ow… Ow…! Ow… Ow…!" He mumbles and watches the coals nervously.

With the time almost approaching its end, Wes steps up a notch and throws a few flaming bowling pins into the mix.

"Is that necessary…? At _all?_ " He glares at the host.

"And…" Wes looks at his stopwatch. "Stop! You're good to go!"

Joseph steps back and lets the flaming coal and pins hit the sand. He observes his now pitch black hands.

"...for the win, huh?" He rolls his eyes before grumpily walking off to the washroom.

"Four-to-three; Gallant Sharpedos still in the lead! You gotta keep picking up the pace, people!" Wes shouts out.

"I have found one!" Sascha announces to her team.

"Me too!" Shouts Wheat.

The two retrieve their dares and read them.

"' _Get hugged by someone of Wes's choosing?_ '" Wheat reads.

"...you go ahead. I shall perform mine after you." Sascha says, slightly blushing.

"So, Wheat." Wes intrudes. "You know who you're getting hugged by?"

The Phanpy gulps. "U-Um, w-who is it?"

From behind, a blindfolded Sergio aims his arms to feel anything near him.

"C'mon, Wes, what the hell am I doin'?" The Machoke questions in annoyance.

"All I need you to do, real quick, is crack this 'coconut' against yourself." Wes grins deviously, holding up Wheat like a ball.

"Uh oh…" Wheat eyes widen anxiously.

"Pft! Easy-peasy, coconut squeezy!" Sergio smirks.

"Please don't say that again." Frowns Wes.

Sergio grabs Wheat from him. He clenches him against his chest and begins gripping the poor little elephant tightly. Wheat wheezes out as he gasps for air; his trunk even folding out and blowing like a party blower.

"And… you got it!" Says Wes.

Sergio drops the pale faced Phanpy. He removes the blindfold and looks down, seeing Wheat gasping for air.

"Thought it's supposed to be a coconut, not a shrimp." He raises a brow at Wes.

"Don't care, to be honest." Wes shrugs. "Next is Sascha. You up for yours?"

"U-Um…" She stutters, blushing at her paper. "I-I shall try- No, um… I _will_ try- No, no! I… I…" She pauses for a moment before sighing. "...am not going to attempt this." She finally answers in defeat.

"Bummer. Well, you suck, so good luck digging for another." Smirks Wes before walking away.

"What was your dare…?" Wheat asks rather weakly.

"I-I'd rather not talk about it…" Sascha blushes before walking away.

Wheat picks up her dare and reads it off to himself. ' _Yell out you wet the bed last night, and if anyone asks, the dare says 'Tell everyone an embarrassing secret.'_ '

"Darn..." Wheat glances back in concern.

"We've found some bottles." Alexandria says, standing by Yanna and Nora.

"Guess we lucked out with three near each other." Yanna comments.

"Whatever." Nora rolls her eyes. "Let's just get these dumb dares over with."

First up, Yanna lies flat on the sand and waits for her challenge. A Grimer slicks his ways toward her, eating and burping away on a bag of chips.

"Where's the challenger, sir?" He nonchalantly asks Wes, not noticing he's crawling over Yanna.

"Just keep on going, intern." Wes smirks.

The Grimer shrugs and keeps moving, already off the Abra. Yanna shudders as she's covered in the purple filth.

"I'd _really_ enjoy not being able to feel right about now." Shudders Yanna, as she walks off traumatized, wiping the muck off herself.

"Next!" Wes yells.

Nora frowns as she's dressed up as a jester as Wes and Lloyd watch with popcorn.

"Now, peasant! Entertain us!" Wes jokes.

"I hate you both." She blushes. She begins hopping around, albeit with a scowl on her face, with her costume's bells jingling away.

" _Happy, happy, look at here; it's all about dancing and cheer! I am your jester, I am the joke; come one, come all, as I cook this egg yolk~..._ " Nora chants dancing around in annoyance.

She cracks an egg over her jewel eye, then looks up at the sun and gets the egg cooking over her eye. Finally, she gives one last twirl with a _very_ fake smile.

"I gotta say, a jester's humor just isn't for me." Wes shrugs. "You still get the point though."

"Just shut it." Nora grunts as she walks away, carrying her costume to the lake then dumping it. "Piece of garbage…"

 **0000000**

" **Freakin' B.S. man…" Nora groans, blushing.**

 **0000000**

"Alexandria! You're up now!" Says Wes.

"A-Already done, Wes." She winces as shes nearly covered head to toe with Krabbies pinching onto her.

"...neat! You're good for the day!" Smiles Wes.

"T-Thanks…" She says before carefully waddling away.

"Wailords have three more! You gotta pick up the pace, now, Sharpedoes!" Says Wes.

Clawing into the sand, Grey flinches when his claws hit a bottle. He bites onto it and shakes the dare out, then reads it. He flushes heavily and nervously plops down covering his face. Nearby, Rosie pauses from her weak digging and walks over to read the dare.

"O-Oh, jeez…" She stutters.

"What's the dare, Rosie?" Quinn asks.

"U-Um, w-well…" She blushes. "I-It says h-he has to get, um… 'CPR' from someone that Wes c-chooses…"

" _And_ I pick…" Wes jumps in. "Sascha! Come on over!"

"W-What…!? On what claim must I get involved with this!?" Sascha shouts blushing madly.

"Um, the 'claim' that I'm the host with the most!" Wes smirks. "Besides, I'll throw you a challenge if you do this."

"For the team, Sascha!" Torvald grins.

"Ugh… I'll make an attempt." Flusters Sascha.

"How is she gonna perform CPR? He's not even _in_ water." Quinn points out.

Wes snaps his fingers and Lloyd comes in with a pail of water. Wes takes it then Lloyd briefly pulls the Houndoom's mouth open before Wes splashes the water it in. Grey immediately starts gagging and gets a bit blue faced.

"Isn't that too much?" Quinn glares.

"This kinda stuff's in the contract! Now go and save him, Sascha!" Yells Wes.

Sascha's eyes widen as she hurries over to Grey. Reluctant and embarrassed at first, she decides to suck it up. She knocks the gagging Houndoom on his back and begins pressing against his chest, before finally deciding to blow air into his mouth.

"Niiice!" Leo pumps his fist.

"He's choking, dude…" Deon awkwardly looks at him.

As she's giving him mouth to mouth, he suddenly coughs making her tense up. She looks away and spits out water in disgust. Grey's wheezes as he regains his breath.

"Is that done and over with?" Sascha sheepishly asks Wes.

"Yep. So here's you free dare for your participation!" Wes says, tossing a bottled dare to her.

She reluctantly bites onto the bottle and runs off in embarrassment. After finishing coughing up water, Grey stands back up and shakes the sand off his back.

"A-Are you alright, um, G-Grey…?" Rosie softly asks.

Grey gives a weak, tired smile and lightly nods. Rosie shakily sighs in relief.

"You've done your part. Now head to the sidelines, bub." Wes says.

Grey sulks his head down in embarrassment and walks off the beach. Rosie sighs before going back to digging.

 **0000000**

" **I-I though he was going to be kinda scary, b-but Grey seems to be really gentle." Comments Rosie.**

 **0000000**

Shaking off her embarrassment, Sascha reads out her dare then raises a brow.

"I just have to indulge in this sweet?" She asks, shaking a piece of chocolate from the bottle onto her paw. "Please don't be unbearable…"

She tosses the chocolate into her mouth, slightly enjoying chewing on it.

"I-I might get a stomache from this, but it tastes sweet enough." She comments before gulping it down. "Was this supposed to be a dare of trust?"

"Nah." Says a bored Lloyd, passing by. "You just took a laxative."

The Lycanroc tenses up and goes pale faced. Without hesitating she dashes off to the campgrounds.

"Feel better!" Torvald yells out to her.

"Ah! Found one!" Icelyn announces happily, holding up a bottle.

"Nice!" Bronco grins. "What's it read?"

"Mm… ' _Eat these_.'" She reads.

She glances at the bottle, seeing about a handful of jelly beans in the bottle.

"That sounds delightful!" She smiles. She shakes all the candy beans into her mouth, then gulps them all down. Suddenly, her face seems to be rather ill-ridden.

"Uh, Icelyn?" Bronco raises a brow.

"I think… these are not all fruit flavored…" She says sickly.

"'Cause they're rejected jelly bean flavors. Flavors ranging from 'moldy cheese' to 'Skuntank', they pack quite the atrocious punch." Wes explains in amusement.

Icelyn's face sickly turns green, groaning as she clutches her stomach.

"Icelyn!" Bronco runs over. "You alright?"

Without warning, the Lilligant gently burps in his face, though the potent made him clutch his nose in disgust.

"Woah! That there smells worse than aged manure." He comments. "At least you got it over with, huh."

"Icelyn is going to brush her teeth for the remainder of the day." She mumbles as she walks away.

"Yeesh. Hope she'll get better." Bronco says.

"Two hours have passed, yet we still have thirteen competitors left on the field." Says Wes. "The teammates waiting on the sidelines seem to be getting rather bored of the search for dares."

On the sidelines, everyone boredly watches as their teammates who were digging look around without saying a single word to each other.

"Ugh…" Nora groans. "This is getting lamer by the second."

"I can't tell if we're lamer for sitting around or their lame for taking too long." Sighs Paisley.

"Tch! You didn't even have to do a challenge. Wait, you've done nothing since you've been on this island!" Nora points out.

"I'm just off to an unlucky start, that's all." Paisley smiles. "Next challenge, I'm sure I can participate comfortably."

"There's nothing, _at all_ , comfortable about these asinine challenges." Alexandria comments.

"A challenge is supposed to be challenging, you know." Joseph adds.

"Duh!" Paisley snorts, rolling her eyes. "What do I look like to you, a-"

"Slacker. A really bad slacker, at that." Yanna says, not even eyeing away from her book.

"Slacker's kind of weak." Paisley tilts her head. "Why not try, like, using more than one word? To tease others, you gotta try a chain of stuff to call them! Besides, I bet when it comes to it, the other team's gonna flake out like the last challenge!"

"Holy- Yo! We both found one over here!" Kimber shouts, both her and Torvald smiling proudly with bottles.

"Ooh! I've found a bottle as well!" Celeste yells back.

Nora and Joseph both throw glares at Paisley, who sheepishly recoils back.

"U-Um, n-now that's what I call 'jinxing it.' Heh heh…" She nervously jokes.

"Just shut your trap." Nora grunts.

"I'll do mine first." Kimber says. She roughly shakes out the dare then reads it. " _'You and the other who gets this must hold hands until the challenge is over.'_ C'mon…!" She groans. "Who the hell am I gonna get stuck with!?"

"Rad! I got a dare, dudes!" Sergio shouts.

"...you're crappin' me, right?" She slaps her face.

"...ah c'mon! Who the hell am I gonna have to do this with!?" He yells out.

"Did you get the 'holding hands' dare?" Wes raises a brow deviously.

"Yeah. Now who's the fool I gotta do this with." He scratches his head in annoyance.

"That would be me." Kimber steps up to him, cross-armed and glaring. "Let's just get this over with."

"G-Great…" Sergio sighs nervously.

The two groan and face away from each other as her paw and his hand hold onto each other.

"This is freakin' stupid." Complains Sergio.

"Just shut up. I don't wanna listen to your voice so close." Glares Kimber.

"Vice-versus." Sergio shrugs.

"It's vice-versa, fathead…" She mutters.

"Now remember," says Wes, "let go before the challenge is over and you'll both be back out there digging. Capishe?"

"Yeah…" The two mutter.

"Cool! Celeste! You're up next!" Wes calls.

Celeste tries steadily breathing to calm herself, but she couldn't help but be anxious.

"J-Just get it over with, please…" She shuts her eyes tightly.

Lloyd shrugs and throws a filled trash can over, followed by a Hitmonchan intern punching the bin then a Hitmonlee double kicking the can, knocking her down hard.

"Yeowch…" Wes winces. "You good in there?"

A twitchy foot is a well enough answer for him.

"Alright, go get cleaned up if you're fine. Torvald, you're up next!"

"Got it!" He smiles.

After already reading his dare, he grabs his stick wand from his tail as a wobbly Crabrawler walks up to him.

"'Aye, lad! Ready to get yer cheeky grin pushed in?" The rowdy Crabrawler eyes him.

"What part of Alola are you from?" Torvald asks innocently.

"Nevermind that, ya lass! Let's start the brawl, already!" He shouts impatiently.

" _Brawl_!" Declares Wes.

Without warning, the Crabrawler charges at Torvald with a barrage of Dizzy Punches. Torvald rushes back, slightly nervous as he barely evades his harsh jabs.

"Could we settle this without a fight?" Torvald asks in the middle of evading.

"If ya wanna win, then fight me ya knuckleheaded oaf!" The Crabrawler shouts.

"Okay then…" Torvald grins merrily. "Fire Spin!"

Torvald spins his magic stick around, surrounding himself with rings of fire. The Crabrawler, not holding back, keeps punching and burns his fists on the fire.

"Gah! Hot! Hot!" He stops and shakes out his hands.

Suddenly, Torvald rushes in front of him and whips him around with his bushy tail. Dazed for a moment, the Crabrawler takes a rough wack to the head by Torvald's stick. His eyes spin as he passes out on the sand.

"Got it!" Torvald smiles, clapping his hands over his head.

"Nice!" Wes pumps his fist. "Torvald passes his challenge!"

"Wait a sec…" Bronco stops from his digging. "Crud! Their team's got three members left! We gotta get this show on the road!"

"Already found one." Keone tiredly waves his bottle from his deep hole. He climbs out and reads his dare. " _'Get paint squirted up your nose.'_ Of course, dammit…"

Keone stands still, eye twitching, as Wes holds two paint up against his nose.

"Don't worry man, this stuff's non-toxic." Smirks Wes.

"Good to know…" Keone groans.

Wes squeezes the paint tightly, squirting almost all of it up the Lycanroc's nostrils. Keone shivers and clenches his fists as he takes the paint up his nose. Wes stops squeezing and tosses the paint tubes behind him.

"How is it?" Wes raises a brow.

Keone pauses, then blows chunks of paint out of his nose. He shakes his head as he walks away, still blowing out paint.

"...okay then!" Grins Wes.

 **0000000**

 **Keone presses his paw against his nose, blowing out another glob of paint in great annoyance.**

" **This show… I'm calling it. It's gonna be the death of me." He mutters.**

 **0000000**

On the Sharpedos' side, Quinn finds a bottle after a long time of digging. She smirks as she takes out her dare. She starts smirking deviously when she reads her dare.

"Wes!" She calls out. "I've dug out the 'switch' dare."

"The… what?" Dusty asks in confusion.

"What's the switch dare, Lloyd?" Wes asks his companion.

The Dusknoir just shrugs. "That dare is an exchange. The one who found it is done for the day, and someone from the rival team gets put back in."

"Ho yeah! Now that's the stuff!" Grins Wes. "Alright Quinn, who you bringin' in?"

"I'll go ahead and return Keone to digging." She smirks.

"What!?" Keone shouts.

"It's payback for tackling Torvald, y'know." She gives an enigmatic smile.

Keone just sighs. "Gimme a break…"

Quinn walks off the beach satisfied as Keone grumbles, ticked off, walking back onto the beach.

"Darn. They're down to two, now." Bronco frowns.

"We just gotta dig harder, than!" Fynn pumps himself up, digging faster than before.

Keone kicks the sand in annoyance, but feels a clink against his claws.

"What the…?" He raises a brow, digging around. He spots a bundle of glass bottles tied together. "Really?" Keone glares over at Lloyd.

"Got lazy with the last few." Shrugs Lloyd.

"Is that dumb cluster the reason we're not finding any?" Momilani huffs, arms-crossed.

"Uh, nope… That's why." Leo points out.

The team turn to see April smiling with a bunch of bottles gathered up in her hands.

"Got some dares, you guys!" She grins.

" _April_!" Fynn shouts.

"Yeah?" She raises a brow.

"April! We're each supposed to find our own dares! Now only you can use those!" Momilani frowns.

"Wha…? When was that established?" She questions.

"During the explanation! You were paying attention, right!?" Asks Bronco.

"I-I figured this challenge was pretty straightforward!" She stutters.

"Ugh!" Her teammates groan in frustration.

"Crap! _Crap_! I'm so sorry!" She nervously apologizes. "Let me make it up! I'll go find some more bottles and let you guys bring them out!"

"No, no, no!" Bronco yells in slight panic. "Alright, just… you go ahead and try those dares. Keone, go ahead and do yours too! We'll have to rush it, but we'll dig around for some more dares!"

"Of course this happens…" Mutters Momilani.

"Let's keep going, everyone!" Fynn says strongly. "We can do it! I know it!"

The rest of the team hurry and resume digger in a faster pace as Keone and April start reading out their dares.

"Tch! Yep. Hell no!" Keone says, tossing out his dare.

Wes picks it up and read it. "' _Kiss someone from the other team who's still digging,_ ' huh? Could've scored, dude."

"Put a sock in it, Wes." Keone rolls his eyes, getting another dare. "' _Get a water soaker full of hot sauce blasted down your throat?_ '"

Keone places his mouth on the nozzle as Wes fills up the canister with hot sauce from bottles with warning signs imprinted on them. Wes finishes and shuts the cap, putting his finger on the trigger.

"Order up!" Wes smirks.

Wes blasts the hot sauce down his throat, immediately causing him to choke up. He takes steps back and coughs up hot sauce as his tongue throbs burning.

"GOD, THAT SUCKS! SUCKS! FREAKIN' SUCKS!" Keone shouts, stomping the sand in pain.

"Annnnnd you failed. Try again, dude." Wes shrugs.

Keone hurries and takes another bottle, reading ' _Wear a Tentacool on your head for fifteen seconds._ '

"Ugh! Just hurry and get it over with!" He shouts, red faced from the intense heat.

Instantly, Wes snickers as he tops his head with a seething Tentacool. Once Keone's eyes purely turn a pale red, his eyes widen and he quickly throws the Tentacool off.

"The hell was that!?" Keone shouts.

"Mind control? I forgot Tentacools can do that." Wes comments. "Also, you couldn't even last an _entire_ second?"

"You try getting mind controlled, jerkwad!" Shouts Keone.

" _Done_!" A muffled voice says. April comes wandering over completely wrapped in foul smelling seaweed.

Keone scoffs. "Of course you get the easier dare…"

"April, you're good to go! Keone, keep at it!" Says Wes.

"Fine!" He rolls his eyes. "At least the other team isn't getting anywhere…"

"Yeah, about that…" Smirks Wes.

Over at the Sharpedos side, Dusty braces himself as Lloyd stands over him with various glass plates. He rapidly crashes all of them against his head, knocking him out at the end but passing him in the challenge.

"And now they're done to one." Wes smirks, crossing his arms. "Better keep at it, slackers!"

 **0000000**

" **It's true, we're on the brink of losing," says Bronco, "but the last member the other team got left isn't too, well,** _ **worrying…**_ **"**

 **0000000**

Rosie slightly whimpers as she looks around the beach, trying to find anywhere a dare could be hidden.

"You can do it Rosie!" Wheat calls out.

"It'd be less troublesome if she had hands…" Thurman sighs.

Digging around an already dug up hole, Rosie finally discovers a dare. Taking it out, she reads ' _Scream as loud as you can._ '

"I-I can't do this…" She stutters. "M-Mm, b-but I have to try…!"

She takes a deep breath, pauses, then takes a try at screaming. However, it only comes out as a frail shaky sigh of breath.

"We've lost." Kimber comments.

"Have some faith! She'll pull through!" Smiles Torvald.

Meanwhile, Keone attempts but painfully misses out on beating his dares. He's listened to an awful mix tape produced by Wes himself, only lasting half a minute, he's tried getting sand kicked in his eyes but just couldn't risk it, and even tried getting electrocuted by an Electivire's high voltage tails but failed to last long.

Beat up and exhausted, Keone groans as he opens up another dare. Reading it, he groans louder in annoyance.

"This show _sucks_ …" He hisses.

Over in the bathroom, Keone looks down at a "clean" toilet, wincing at the gross murky green water.

Keone gulps. "Just… one lick?"

"Yep! But remember to swallow, too. Heh heh!" Wes chuckles in amusement.

Clenching his fists, he nervously sits on his knees as Wes smiles and backs away outside. Keone clenches his fists tighter before going in for the lick. However, the moment his tongue touches the water, his body freezes up in disgust.

"AAAAGGGGHHHH!" He shouts, grossly followed by the sounds of violent vomiting. Wes, standing outside, whistles as he cheekily walks away from the mess.

Back on the beach, Rosie finally brings out another dare from the sand. After reading it, she gulps nervously as Lloyd brings her a blender full of a pitch-black liquid.

"W-What is that…?" She asks wide-eyed.

Lloyd shrugs. "Don't know. Just had an intern throw whatever he wanted in there."

"B-But it's all black!" She stutters.

"Beats me. Just get it over with, kid." Lloyd says as he puts down the blender and puts a bendy straw in it.

She groans nervously as she stares at mysterious drink.

"I-I don't know…" She hesitates.

"Go for it, Rosie!" Torvald calls out.

"That drink looks _really_ nasty though…" Says Dusty.

Shakily sighing, Rosie sucks it up and takes a sip from the drink. She shudders greatly at the disgusting taste, face turning pale. However, she decides to keep going, taking a sip at a time but getting more nauseous with each taste.

 **0000000**

" **I-I can't tell what was in there, b-but I think it contained every food group imaginable…" Rosie shivers.**

 **0000000**

Feeling woozy, Rosie groans seeing she's only drunk about half of it.

"I-I don't think I can finish…" She groans. "There's more liquid than me…"

"C'mon! If you finish, we win!" Kimber shouts. "The other is starting to catch up!"

True to her word, some of the other team's members were catching up. Bronco had just finished gulping down an entire bottle of vinegar, much to his dismay, Fynn is giving thumbs up despite him being smacked by a frying pan in the face, and Leo gave a pained smile being entirely frozen from an Ice Beam. Momilani remains digging around the beach.

"Hurry up! You're about to lose to a pipsqueak!" Sergio shouts at her.

"Quiet! I'm looking for a dare as best as I can!" She snaps back. "And _where_ is Keone!? He's not done!"

"Heard him over in the bathroom hurling up a storm. So, uh, he's stuck there for now." Deon says.

"Ugh! _Great_!" Momilani complains.

"C'mon, Rosie! Finish it up and we'll win!"

"O-Oh jeez…" She mumbles to herself.

Weakly taking a deep breath, she tries to sip up as much of the drink as she could. However, instant regret hit before she spewed out the drink, managing to knock over the blender and spilling the last of it.

"Aw man…" Wheat groans.

"Since there's no more, does that count as a win?" Hugo asks.

"Really?" Quinn raises a brow at him.

"A-Ah! No! I-I messed it up…!" She nervously stutters. "Oh… N-Now what can I do…?"

Looking around, she hesitates but decides to hurry into a hole and starts jumping against the sand in hopes of getting the sand out faster.

"I can't see what she's doing." Celeste looks out.

After disappearing into the hole for a moment, suddenly a glass bottle in thrown out followed by Rosie tiredly crawling out.

"S-She found one!?" Gleams Wheat.

"What makes you think she'll be able to do it?" Scoffs Kimber.

"With faith! She can _definitely_ pull through!" Torvald ensures her.

Taking out the dare, she reads it but instantly gets horrified from the ominous reading.

" _Give this to Lloyd and embrace the wrath._ "

"T-That's really creepy…" She gulps. "A-And terrifying…"

"Go for it, Rosie!" Celeste shouts out.

"Believe in yourself and you can achieve what you seek!" Thurman shouts out.

"Kill it, my dude!" Grins Muriel, earning a bewildered glance from the two.

Rosie can do nothing but quiver where she stands. However, she shakily grabs the ring, holding it between her two vines.

 **0000000**

" **To be honest, I… wasn't sure what to expect." Says Bonnie, staring in thought. "Definitely not that."**

 **0000000**

"U-Um, Mr. Lloyd?" She stutters, holding out the ring. "U-Um… d-delivery for you…?"

Lloyd sighs. "What is it?" His eye shoots wide open. "No, no, no! Get rid of-"

"BACK OFF, HEATHEN!" A cryptic voice calls out.

From the sky, a frowning Drifblim swoops down and heads toward Rosie.

"E-Eep!" She squeals in fright. "W-W-Wha-!?"

She frantically runs around in circles crying before the Drifblim swoops down and snatches her off the beach.

"NO ONE WILL BREAK MY BROTHER'S HEART!" The Drifblim shouts as she carries Rosie away over the forest.

"Ugh…" Lloyd groans. "Sis! Put her back down!"

"NO!" His sister shouts back. "NOW BEGONE WITH YOU, YOU CHUNK OF GRASS!"

"AHHHH! N-N-NO! PUT ME DOWN! PLEEEASSSEEE!" Rosie shouts to no avail.

Her teammates watch in horror as she's being abducted.

"Does… Does this mean we win?" Hugo asks.

"Well, she allowed herself to be taken I guess, so… yep! Gallant Sharpedos win today's challenge.

"Yell heah!" Muriel shouts.

Many of the Diehard Wailords groan in defeat.

"Uh, what's gonna happen with Rosie though?" Wheat asks.

Lloyd steps up. "Knowing my sister, she'll probably toss her deep in the woods. Either that, or toss her over the cliff. Just something threatening."

"We gotta save her then!" Celeste shouts.

"If you wanna, go for it." Shrugs Wes. "Figured she'd make her way back on her own."

"Someone come help me get her!" Celeste exclaims before running off. Despite being on the other team, Keone was about to step up, but suddenly Grey starts making a run for it and chases along with Celeste. Keone, along with a few others, blink in surprise.

"Anyway, for you Diehard _Losers_ , you'll be facing your first elimination ceremony! So, see ya chumps tonight!" Says Wes before walking off with Lloyd.

"Damn…" Scoffs Sergio.

"Hey, it's all good guys!" Deon smiles. "Once we get through tonight, we'll be even more determined to win again!"

"Afraid you're missing the point, Deon." Bronco crosses his arms. "A few of our teammates let us down out there. We gotta toss somebody who can't do their share in work, or just someone who doesn't follow the rules properly."

"Heh heh…" April sheepishly chuckles.

"Icelyn _does_ agree we should at least stay positive from here on." Says Icelyn.

"Let's just get this over with." Momilani intervenes, before throwing a glare over at Paisley. "There's one slacker I'd really enjoy seeing sent back home tonight."

"Hey! I haven't even done much, y'know!" She grins cheekily.

"Yeah. Exactly." Momilani smirks before wandering off.

"Yes. _Exactly._ " Alexandria briefly glances at her before walking off with her teammates.

"U-Um… guys? P-Pals?" Paisley nervous smiles.

Deon places his hand on her shoulder. "It'll be alright! You technically didn't cost the team at all this challenge. I'm sure they'll know the right choice tonight."

"Tch… Guess you're right, Buckethead. Hee hee!" She cheekily chuckles, walking away.

"B-Buckethead!? My head looks more like a helmet than that…" He says to himself as he follows along.

Standing on top of a rotting tree trunk in the middle of a tiny clearing, Sergio impatiently looks around waiting for someone as Nora rummages through her stolen coin purse.

"Idiot. He's not flaking on us, so just give it up." Nora bosses him.

"That dude's settin' us up. It's a gut feeling, so it ain't wrong!" He glares out into the forest.

"So just beat him to a dang pulp if he does, ya ugly fart." Nora snickers.

Suddenly, Joseph approaches flicking a leaf off his shoulder.

"Alright, you two, we're going to keep this brief." Sergio says in seriousness.

"Oh boy. Time for the magic words, huh?" Smirks Nora.

"It's time… to make this show's strong group of antagonists." Joseph notions. "So, are you two willing to team up with me for an alliance?"

"It's no _way_ a guaranteed spot to the finale, but it'll definitely get me further." Nora grins deviously. "I'll give your alliance a shot."

"With this set up, we'll knock out some of the stronger chumps, so count me in on this." Sergio smirks.

"Hmph." Joseph smirks himself. "Decent enough. Annoyed to ask, but any questions?"

The two just blink unresponsively at him.

"...take that as you don't have any questions?"

"Well, she's got one." Sergio points behind him.

He immediately whips himself around. Alexandria leans against a tree, fin raised up with a rather cocky smirk. Joseph sighs, pinching the bridge of his odd nose.

"Of course, with this crap…" Joseph swore under his breath. "So, you here to call us out? Maybe blackmail?"

Alexandria chuckles. "I saw you head into the woods, and I can tell by your nature you'd be up to something like this."

"And what do you wanna gain from that?" Joseph raises his brow.

"I want in." She smirks. "I can't have myself defenseless around here. I'd easily be targeted by those teaming up, like you three."

"Uh, I don't want his chick with us!" Sergio huffs. "She's too… _nerdy_."

"Pft! Seriously?" Nora snickers at him.

Joseph sighs. "Alright, you're in."

"Say wha..?" Sergio blankly questions.

"You know letting her off would mean she'd just throw us under the bus later." Joseph glares back at him. "So, the _four_ of us will be teaming up then."

"Good to know I'll be having comrades here, then." Alexandria smirks, glancing behind her.

Behind a bush, a pair of eyes watches on, though she'll be keeping the secret to herself.

"Are we gonna names ourselves something?" Nora asks boredly.

"...why would we need a name?" Joseph questions.

"Meh." She shrugs. "Seen a show where the alliances named themselves. It's pretty damn lame!" She laughs.

"Ooh! A name would make sound even more killer!" Sergio agrees.

"I'd enjoy a proper name as well." Alexandria smirks at Joseph.

"Ugh…" He rolls his eyes. "Guess we'll go with a name. But _I'll_ be naming it."

"Whatcha got in mind?" Nora grins.

"I'm going to keep it simplistic, since we're secret and what not… So, 'Moon Platoon' should suffice."

"Lame!" Shouts Sergio mockingly. "Where's the vibe that gives off we're tougher than others in that lame name?"

"Hm. I think it holds up for us." Says Alexandria. "I think it fits us well."

"Whatever. Works for me." Shrugs Nora.

"Ugh." Huffs Sergio. "Guess we're named 'Moon Platoon', huh?"

"Guess it's settled then…" Alexandria smirks, glancing back and seeing the eyes are gone. "Since we're official now, how about we talk about tonight's elimination ceremony?"

"Yeah! Who's the sucker we're gonna send crying home!?" Nora cackles.

Joseph puts himself into a thinking pose. "There's only a few pokemon on the chopping block. April, for her screw up, Paisley, for being a snobby nuisance… maybe Keone or Momilani. They're not exactly fitting in well and have held us back in the challenges."

"We should vote against April or Paisley then." Alexandria recommends.

"And I think we know who'll be more problematic to us later on…" Says Joseph.

 **0000000**

" **This alliance? An easy way to get a few scapegoats to keep me out of the chopping block." Alexandria says. "As for those pair of eyes… I'm glad out of anyone, it was** _ **him**_ **that followed me…"**

 **0000000**

 **Torvald looks struck in thought. "If there's an alliance, then that means…"**

" **I should form a group like that too!" He claps his hands over his head, smiling brightly. "A group of pals that can help each other out sounds like wholesome fun! Hah hah! More fun for everyone!"**

 **0000000**

For their first time, the Diehard Wailords sit on the stumps before the bonfire. Wes smiles as he holds a plate of different colored marshmallows.

"Diehard Wailords, you're here tonight for _your_ first elimination ceremony. C'mon, you seriously couldn't keep at least a two-win streak going?" He mocks them, earning a few glares. "Anyway, tonight's gonna be simple. On this plate are thirteen stale berry-flavored treats. If your name's called, you can come up and get one as proof your safe for tonight."

"And if we don't get one?" Icelyn questions.

"Then you are _outta_ here!" Yells Wes excitedly. "No recount, no do-over, no mercy! You'll be sent packing and never, ever, _ever_ __be back on this island again!"

"O-Oh…" Stutters Icelyn.

"So, without further ado, the ceremony begins!" Shouts Wes. "And the first to get their marshmallow goes to… Deon!"

"Yes!" He grins, running up to get his marshmallow.

"Joseph, you're safe!"

Joseph just nods and quietly goes up.

"Nora! You're good too!"

Nora smirks as she walks on up.

"Hmm… Bronco, Alexandria, and Yanna. You three are safe!"

Bronco smirks and pumps his fist. He raises a brow at the other two walking up with a lack of any enthusiasm.

"Icelyn… Fynn… and Leo. You three are safe as well."

Leo gasps then squeezes Fynn in a tight hug, choking him out but earning a delighted chuckle from Icelyn.

"Sergio, Keone, and Momilani. Come on up!"

"Aw yeah!" Sergio shouts, flexing his arms."

"Whatever…" Keone sickly mutters to himself as he walks up.

As Momilani passes Paisley, she throws her a confident smirk. Paisley gulps and exchanges nervous glances with April.

"Paisley," Wes speaks up, "no need to sugar coat. You're disrespectful. Like, _really_ really disrespectful. And April, your lack of paying attention caused your team to fall far behind. We could agree it's what caused your team the win."

April chuckles sheepishly as Paisley holds onto her tail, clouded with worry.

"And do you know who this last, disgusting marshmallow's going to?" He raises a brow cockily.

The two nervously slowly shake their heads nervously.

"The final one of tonight will be going to… little miss Paisley!"

Paisley sighs in relief and goes to retrieve her marshmallow. April remains seated, sadly slumping over in defeat.

"Sorry everyone…" She sighs.

"You're a cool person, April, but ya gotta pay attentions some more, y'hear?" Bronco explains. "Don't worry, we're sure to miss ya."

"Icelyn will keep you in her heart!" Icelyn waves.

"Yeesh! She's not dying, guys…" Leo complains.

April weakly smiles and decides to accept the results. She stands up, taking a deep breath.

"Well… I'll have to get'cha next time, Wes!" She grins. "See ya again!"

"I'd rather not…" Wes frowns.

April rushes down to her boat grinning then waves a cheerful goodbye as she's taken away.

"Man, I can't wait for when we get a sore loser to get booted." Smirks Wes. "Well, that's that then. You suckers survived… for now. If I'm being honest, I'm sure half of you will be gone by a week."

"Whatever, man." Bronco rolls his eyes as their team heads back to their cabin.

As Paisley finishes her stale marshmallow, Momilani passes by glaring.

"Should've been you, don't you agree?" The Primarina glares.

"Heh! You'll get me next time, seaweed hair!" Laughs Paisley.

"Seaweed…?" Momilani pouts, feeling her hair. "Hmph! Keep that up and you'll be gone for sure."

"We'll see… Hee hee!" Paisley chuckles.

As the two walk off, Wes just shakes his head.

"Man, it's just a gut feeling, but when the drama takes off, _it's gonna take off_." He says. "With one member down from each team, there's still plenty more to pick off! Who else will screw up and cost themselves the chance at the grand prize? And what kind of alliances are we gonna see? Find out next time, on Pokemon! Drama! _Island_!"

 **I know this story's been on hiatus even though it's just started, but I promise you it's back on full resume! Thanks for sticking by, and I'll hope you be here for the full story! Until next time…**

 **See! Ya!**


	4. Journey to the Center of the Island

**Hey! Ya!**

 **Since so far I've written the last few chapters in present tense, I'm gonna format it in past tense this chapter. Just trying to figure out what's more comfortable to both me and you. Now back to adventure!**

* * *

Inside the boys' side of the Sharpedos cabin, most of the boys were on the floor circled up enjoying a game of cards. Grey silently hid back in his bed watching and Torvald stayed on his bed, resting his eyes humming away in a bright mood.

"Say Torvald," Thurman glanced over at him, "I bet if you were walking right now, you'd have some skip to your step. What's got your spirit so high?"

"Hee hee! I'm just thinking out a really nice idea for all of us!" He grinned.

Dusty gulped. "A-A plan? That sounds a bit menacing…"

"But it's _Torvald_. He's doesn't wanna hurt anyone!" Defended Wheat.

"Didn't he beat up a Crabrawler in the last challenge?" Hugo remarked, focusing on his cards.

"For the challenge…" Thurman shrugged.

"Well, what's the idea Torvald?" Wheat asked, scooting two cards forward with his trunk.

"I got an idea cooking up in my mind." He poked his head. "We gotta do, like… a special group here!"

"An alliance then?" Thurman raised a brow, tossing two cards to Wheat.

"Nope! Just like a special bonding group to help our team get along!" Torvald gleamed.

"A group… within the group?" Dusty scratched his head, putting in three cards.

"Yeah! Haha!" Torvald chuckled. "We can have sessions where we just hang together and do something that'll get us closer to each other, you know?"

"Ah! Group bonding!" Thurman realized as he tossed cards to Dusty. "That sounds wonderful, Torvald! It'll really get us to harmonize and help us in challenges by having a better sense of trust!"

"That sounds kinda fun!" Wheat wagged his little tail, still focusing on his cards. "What'll we do though?"

"I bet we can find a nice, peaceful spot not too far into the forest." Suggested Thurman, exchanging a card for himself.

"K-Kinda boring…" Dusty mumbled to himself.

"We can talk about anything fun! Or play some games out there too!" Torvald suggested further.

"Truly fascinating…" Thurman nodded to himself. "Would you like to trade in, Hugo?"

"Um… Hugo is still a bit lost, so he'll keep his cards this round…" Hugo scratched his rock brow in confusion.

"Alright! Let's show what we got!" Wheat smirked, tossing his cards down. "A four-of-a-kind with aces!"

"Ugh… I only got a pair of Nidoqueens." Dusty sighed, tossing his cards away.

"My three-of-a-kind's obsolete then…" Thurman smiled, showing his hand with three nines. "Did you get anything Hugo?"

"Hugo isn't sure…" Doubted Hugo. "What kind of thing does this get?"

Hugo faced his cards to them, showing off five numbers in a row, all with the matching diamond suit.

"Woah! Hugo just killed us!" Wheat shouted.

"H-Huh!? Hugo didn't want to!" He defended himself.

"You didn't actually, Hugo, don't worry." Smiled Thurman.

Torvald chuckled loudly, getting a chuckle out of Wheat and a shy smile from Dusty and even Grey.

"ATTENTION CAMPERS! ATTENTION… CAMPERS!" Wes called over the camp speakers. "MEET UP OUTSIDE YOUR CABINS FOR YOUR NEXT CHALLENGE!"

"Aw crud…" Groaned Dusty.

"Hugo hates to bring up troubled thoughts, but do you think we can win it again?" Hugo worried.

"Of course!" Wheat stood proudly, wagging his tail. "We've got nothing but nice pokemon on our team!"

"Uh… what about Kimber?" Said Dusty.

"She's one tough cookie, but I can definitely tell she doesn't wanna be _against_ us!" Torvald smiled. "Now let's go have some fun!"

Torvald hopped off his bed and headed out the cabin followed by a joyful Thurman and Wheat.

"A-Are we sure we can win this!?" Dusty asked in frantic pursuit.

As Hugo swiftly piled up the cards, he noticed Grey leaving the cabin sulking.

"Are you feeling sick, Grey?" Hugo asked in concern.

Grey weakly looked back and shook his head before sulking out the cabin. Hugo grunted unsurely.

 **0000000**

" **Hugo hopes he'll feel better later in the summer…" Hugo said concernedly.**

 **0000000**

* * *

Gathered up in front of their cabins, everyone waited as Wes and Lloyd grabbed two _very_ large travelling bags from the back of their jeep.

"Ooh~ Are we camping _while_ we're camping…" Asked Muriel, tilting her body curiously.

"Well, I guess you're right." Shrugged Wes, dropping the bags onto the ground. "You camp cronies will be going on a little excursion today."

" _Yes_!" Wheat whispered to himself.

"What area are we venturing out in?" Sascha asks.

"The woods, of course!" Wes smiled. "But you won't just be camping. In the center of the forest, there's a small cliff. On the very top of it and the very bottom are two flags with your guys' team logos on it."

"So there's one on the ground and another on the peak of it?" Alexandria questioned.

"Yep! For winning the last challenge, the Gallant Sharpedos get to comfortably grab their flag on ground level. However, the Diehard Wailords must climb up the cliff to snatch their flag." Wes elaborated.

"That's a bunch of garbage!" Spat Nora.

"Well tell your team to _not_ be garbage in challenges, then maybe you won't get stuck with a penalty." Smirked Wes. "But hey, if it makes you feel better, you can have the bags Lloyd's holding and the other team can have the now slightly dirty bags on the dirt."

"Sounds fair." Bonnie shrugged.

"Sounds like he's mocking them." Smirked Kimber.

"What's even in 'em?" Sergio crossed his arms.

"As you can see, on top of the bags are rolled up tents." Wes said, pointing to them. "Inside the bag… is absolutely nothing."

"But why nothing?" Icelyn asked. "Shouldn't we need any sort of tools out there?"

"Your moves should suffice as your necessities." Said Wes. "And as for food, it's your duty to knab some in the forest. Don't worry, you guys are only gonna be out there for the weekend. You'd die from boredom before something like starvation."

"To win this challenge, we must…?" Joseph rolled his hand, waiting for him.

"To _win_ ," glared Wes, "there's just two requirements: be back at the bonfire pit with your flag _and_ your whole team. Leaving even one man behind will deny you your victory."

"What happens if we get lost, by the way?" Paisley asked.

"I don't know, just find your way back or have someone fetch you?" Wes shrugged unsurely. "Rosie over there got back, didn't she."

Being brought up, Rosie nervously backed up behind Kimber's big leg.

"Choose someone else to coward behind, dammit…" Murmured Kimber in annoyance.

"Finally, as much as it'd be entertaining to see you stealing your flags back and forth or ditching it somewhere you can't find 'em, it will _not_ be allowed this challenge." Explained Wes. "The Sharpedos' flag can only be handled by a Sharpedo, and the sames goes for the Wailords."

"If I may ask, why is our time limit a weekend? The island surely isn't that big." Momilani brought up.

"Just wanted to make it fair, since you'll have no map or compass to guide you back." Grinned Wes. "Just a heads up, there's not a single path made out there, so it's all-out survival in the wilderness!"

"Hate to ask, but anything else?" Joseph questions.

"Well…" Wes scratched his chin, looking up. "Oh! When we bought this island, I _think_ some Pokemon were residing in the forest. I just don't know who or what they are."

"You… didn't steal this land from anyone, right?" Thurman hesitated.

"Of course not! I just didn't get the woods checked out, so I'm not sure if they're exactly 'resident-free.'" Wes assured. "Now, you teams will be starting your camping trip in just a minute. But first, we'll spread you teams apart. Gallant Sharpedos, follow me!"

With that, Wes walked off east of the cabins, reluctantly followed along by the Sharpedos.

"You guys are following me…" Grunted Lloyd, floating off west.

"This is gonna suck, isn't it?" Keone mumbled to himself as he started walking.

"Jeez, I really hope not…" Fynn worried, walking aside him.

"I didn't… Nevermind…" Keone sighed, scratching his head as he looked away.

 **0000000**

" **For the sake of his spot here, Fynn's better off just staying away from me…" Keone slouched.**

 **0000000**

" **I know he's a good guy, so I vow to make Keone the bestest of friends by the end of the show!" Fynn boasted.**

 **0000000**

Meeting at the edge of the forest, the Wailords watch as Wes peered into the forest.

"Think this is a good spot…" He mumbled. "Alright suckers, here you are! And remember, try to have some fun while you're out there."

"You mean it?" Torvald asked happily.

"Nope! I hope you're all at each other's throats! Haha!" Laughed Wes. "See ya on the flip side!"

With that, Wes got picked up by an intern in his jeep and drove away still laughing to himself.

"Of course…" Sighed Celeste, shaking her head.

Over by another edge of the forest, Lloyd tossed the two bags down as the Wailords idle by.

"Um… what do we do now?" Leo asked anxiously.

"Hope for the best…" Lloyd said tiredly before phasing through the ground.

" _And_ here goes nothing…" Joseph remarked.

* * *

As they head into the forest, the Gallant Sharpedos carefully paced themselves as they eyed their surroundings. Being stuck with one bag, Thurman hummed to himself peacefully as he stayed behind with Kimber, also stuck with a bag. She, however, was boredly slouched over as she walked.

"You… guys think there's pokemon actually in here?" Dusty asked, anxiously looking around.

"They're probably friendly! I couldn't see why they'd wanna hurt us!" Smiled Torvald, merrily holding his hands behind his head.

"Hugo hopes that nobody else is in here…" Admitted Hugo.

"I'm sure we'll be just fine." Celeste assured him. "Well since we lack any food, we should pick up some berries along the way. I might be able to spot some herbs to make some tea for us."

"Yeah? And with what supplies?" Kimber grunted.

Celeste tapped her chin in thought. "Hm. With the some wood, I could craft a makeshift kettle. I'd need the assistance of Dusty's claws, though."

"I-I can barely cut an apple with these things…" Dusty sadly complained at his claws.

"I'm sure you can do just fine." Smiled Celeste. Dusty weakly chuckled in agreement.

A bit behind the pack, Grey hung his head low, staring into the dirt as he walked along. Rosie glanced back nervously and noticed him moping. She turned forward, shivering and sweating as she thought to herself for a moment.

"O-Oh… M-Maybe just one more try…" Rosie mumbled to herself.

"One more try?" Thurman picked up.

"O-Oh! S-Sorry, s-sorry!" Rosie apologized frantically.

"Don't stress, Rosie. Please." He assured. "How about taking a gander at this forest to ease yourself? Nature is perfect for achieving tranquility."

Rosie nervously puffed her cheeks as she glanced behind her one more time.

"M-Mm… I-I can try…" Rosie mumbled to herself again.

Rosie slowed her walking down, briefly slowing down enough to have Grey catch up to her.

"U-Um, G-Grey?" She weakly spoke up.

Grey blinked. He glanced down to see her but faced forward again, blushing as he looked away.

"U-Um… U-Uh…" She nervously stuttered, on the verge of tears.

He glanced at her, getting surprised seeing her almost crying. Looking down at her sadly, Grey seemed to wanna sigh in shared discomfort. Rosie was about lightly shake her head to fling off some of her tears. Suddenly, Grey lightly bumped her with his snout. Looking up, she saw him weakly smiling. She paused for a moment, then returned her own weak little smile to him. Despite shyly, the two exchanged their best smiles they could manage.

Celeste and Thurman smiled to each other having watched over the two from the front.

* * *

Over on the Wailords' side, the group travelled in complete silence. Bronco and Deon trailing in the back, holding onto the group's bags, worriedly glanced at each other.

"Not much talk goin' on here." Bronco remarked.

"The morale _is_ pretty low…" Sighed Deon. "We gotta get our spirits up, you know?"

"Any suggestions?" Bronco raised a brow.

Deon thought for a moment. "How about just a discussion? Like, let's bring up a subject and roll with it to get us talking?"

"Ooh!" Paisley spoke up, overhearing them. "Can we talk about the challenge? 'Cause it's boring like Yanna over there!"

"Yeah, I can agree with that." Yanna shrugged, floating as she read her book.

"Does the nerd do anything other than reading?" Sergio butted in.

"Writing's also kinda neat, I guess." Yanna added, not even eyeing away from her book.

" _Bo-ring_!" Teased Paisley.

"She's seems more interesting than the likes of you…" Momilani murmured to herself.

"Oh! Speaking of, I wanna work on your jokes! You really stink at 'em." Laughed Paisley.

"I'll pass on your offer, thank you." Momilani rolled her eyes.

"C'mon, guys!" Deon spoke up concernedly. "Can't we just have some fun while we're out here?"

"I'd just rather get the challenge over with, if you don't mind me saying." Joseph interjected.

"Are we even headed toward the middle of the island? It's quite hard to tell when there's nothing but trees around us." Alexandria pointed.

"It'd be nice to have someone with wings…" Sighed Fynn.

"She does." Sergio pointed back at Alexandria.

"Doesn't mean they're capable of flight." She frowned.

"What kind of Pokemon has wings and still sucks enough to not fly?" Sergio glared.

"You know, a Druddigon can't fly too." Fynn commented.

"They've got nothin' to do with her." Sergio spat back.

"Nope." Keone tiredly spoke up without batting an eye. "They've got two things in common."

"And what's that, ya mutt?" Sergio raised a brow confidently.

"Useless wings, sure, but both have capability to whoop your ass anyday, anytime." Keone retorted.

"Ooh! You got him!" Joked Fynn before giggling. A few others snickered to themselves as Sergio got red face.

"Tch! I don't need this!" Shouted Sergio, walking faster.

"But ya need this!" Nora shouted out of nowhere.

"Wha-"

Suddenly, a thick branch whacked the Machoke in the neck hard enough to nearly flip him over entirely. As he groaned on the ground, a few others winced or kept humored smiles to themselves.

"Gaaahahahaha!" Nora slapped her knee, howling with laughter. "That was a hella rad clothesline! Hahaha!"

"Bite me…" Sergio groaned.

* * *

Awhile into the forest, the teams still wander aimlessly in with not much to do. Over with the Gallant Sharpedos, the group quietly walked along as Thurman whistles lightly for entertainment. In the back, Torvald played I-Spy with the two shy members of their group.

"Okay, okay…" Torvald smiles, eyeing around. "I spy, with my little eye… something green, moving, _and_ lots of fun."

Grey softly smiled as he glanced down at Rosie, who was thinking about the clear riddle.

"U-Um…" She stuttered. Then it hit her. "O-Oh! I-Is it, u-um… me?"

"You got it!" Torvald clapped and smiled. Rosie blushed but brightly smiled in her own awe.

"They're just the cutest, hm?" Celeste murmured to Quinn, smiling back at them.

"I can tell one of them is…" Quinn cooed, eyeing back as well.

Celeste chuckled. "Sorry to out you like this, but I can see you have a crush on a fellow teammate."

"You don't say." Quinn slyly joked. "That Grey… Houndooms are a tough breed, but the gentle touch he's got in him makes him so… appealing. I just wanna see the spark in him rile up, you know?"

" _Not_ quite…" Celeste awkwardly rubbed her head. "Do be patient with him. Grey seems very fragile…"

"Mhm. Patience is a virtue, after all…" Quinn remarked.

 **0000000**

" **Now, I've got** _ **two**_ **things I want on this island." Quinn smirked. "The winnings for myself, of course, but to also win over Grey's heart. Ooh, I want us to just shower each other with love and affection~"**

 **Quinn chuckled to herself. "One day…"**

 **0000000**

"So, um…" Wheat spoke up, walking between Bonnie and Muriel. "W-What do you guys like to do for fun?"

"Simple stuff, I guess." Shrugged Bonnie.

Muriel creepily glanced back at him. "Disassociating is pretty fun for me. You ever feel detached from the world? It's pretty neat. It's fun to get detached from my body during nice walks outdoors, like we're doing now…"

"O-Oh… Okay…" Wheat stuttered out, taken aback by her.

Ahead of them, Hugo watched curiously as Sascha sniffed the ground as she walked.

"If Hugo may ask," Hugo spoke, "why are you sniffing the dirt?"

"I am hunting down any trace of food sources, such as a fruit or edible plants." She glanced back before continuing sniffing.

"Hugo didn't know a Pokemon could do that!" He realized, slightly in awe.

Hugo suddenly bumped into her tail, floating back to spit out any hairs from his mouth.

"A bush of berries is near!" Sascha declared, glancing around.

She dashed through some bushes, disappearing for a moment. Everyone paused and watched curiously. Suddenly, a torn out Oran Berry Bush was thrown over, plopping down in front of them. Sascha jumped back out from the bushes and shook the leaves off herself.

"W-Wah!" Dusty jumped back surprised.

"Amazing!" Celeste gleamed. "That has _plenty_ of berries on it! Wonderful find, Sascha!"

Sascha humbly nodded. Celeste and Thurman quickly got to work on picking the berries and storing them into a backpack.

 **0000000**

" **I wish to reach the point where one works individually." Said Sascha. "I think these competitions call it a 'merge.' But for the time being, I will aid my team to the very best."**

 **0000000**

* * *

Over with the Wailords…

"Come back here, ya stupid twerp!" Sergio shouted, chasing after Nora. The Sableye just wheezed laughing as she ran away from him.

"Ugh. These two already got annoying…" Sergio muttered to himself.

"Hey, guys?" Leo spoke up. "Are we sure we're on the right track?"

"These trees _are_ pretty tall…" Deon glanced up worryingly.

"Nobody can fly, so I'm afraid we're stuck there…" Icelyn commented.

"Oh! Oh!" Fynn excitedly spoke up. "I'll just climb up a tree and scope everything out!"

His teammates were about to protest, but the proud Dedenne already began running up a tree. His team watched on unsure, though Sergio kept chasing after a still hysterical Nora, as he climbed his way up to the peak. He shouted something back, but his team couldn't pick up his tiny voice.

"What'd you say!?" Bronco shouted back.

After a moment, Fynn came scouring back down energetically.

"It's just up ahead, guys!" He shouted excitedly, hopping back down. "Just, like, a few more miles I think!"

"Aw man," complained Paisley, "Wes is such an asshat for this."

"It's alright! It'll take like another or two then we'll get there." Assured Deon.

"Icelyn is curious…" Pondered Icelyn. "Why would Wes give us a deadline of the whole weekend? We should manage to return by morning…"

"Wes probably expects we're too dumb to do this overnight." Yanna commented, not eyeing away from her book yet again.

"That Wes…" Scoffed Momilani. "He can think we're too young to be successful, but we'll show him that we're more than capable of a silly night in the woods."

"Yeah! Stick it to the man!" Encouraged Paisley.

Momilani glared back at her for a moment, then rolled her eyes deciding it wasn't worth it.

"By the way," Yanna spoke, still reading away, "what's the plan for food supplies?"

"Ugh…!" Leo moaned, rubbing his belly. "Since we got in here, this _forest_ has no grub to _forage…_ My stomach's actually killing me…"

"Let's just stop for a sec and find some berries or something." Suggested Deon.

"Just wait it out." Joseph spoke up. "More than likely, we'll come across some berries on the way."

"Ugghhhh!" Leo groaned, plopping on the ground.

Deon chuckled. "C'mon, dude. If we find something to eat, I'll give you my portion."

"...okay." Smiled Leo, sitting himself up. "I wanna find some grub soon, though…" He groaned.

"Like that?" Deon smirked, pointing to a bush.

Leo squinted his eyes, not noticing anything, until he saw a shadowed small red orb in the bush."

"A Cheri Berry!" Leo gleamed star-eyed. He hurried over to the bush and plucked the berry off. " _Bun apathy!_ "

"That's, um… not the right phrase…" Deon chuckled as Leo flicked the berry into his mouth.

Leo sighed in delight, but then suddenly flinched and shivered.

"Woah! What's wrong?" Asked Deon concerned.

"Ech! I forgot how spicy these were! It's burning up my tongue!" Cried Leo, waving his hand at his throbbing tongue.

"U-Uh! Shoot…!" Deon panicked, looking around.

He pushed past some bushes, looking for anything edible that would cool off his tongue. Just a few steps in, he stepped right over the edge of a small slope tripping him over.

"Oh crap!" He yelled, falling on his behind and roughly sliding down. He rubbed his lower back in pain, but then he spotted something. "Oh gosh! Leo, over here!" He called back to his friend.

Leo, still fanning his tongue, frantically ran out from the bushes yet failed to notice the slope as well. He yelped as he tumbled down, rolling right next to Deon.

"Ugh…" He groaned, dizzy.

"Look, dude!" Deon nudged at him.

Leo looked up, seeing the thick bush growing various fruits before their eyes.

" _Berry_ awesome!" He shouted. Deon rolled his eyes amused as the Leo ran up to the bush, checking over it. "This thing's packed with so many! I'm seeing Nanab, Razz, Pinap, Wepear, Bluk… This thing's a gold mine of berries!"

"It looks like it's got a couple dozen on it…" Deon noticed, sweeping himself off.

Leo grabbed one of each, briefly juggled them around, then threw them up and easily swallowed them all down.

"Aw yeah!" Shouted Leo, pumping his arms.

"This is enough to last the whole team. We'll probably have some left to save for snacks, too." Smiled Deon. "Wait… the team! We gotta go catch up!"

Leo hurriedly snatched the bag off him and began tossing the berries into it.

"It'll be fine!" He assured confidently. "They probably noticed we're missing already, so they'll come back in a minute. Let's just gather these up!"

Deon glanced behind himself unsure but chose to just shrug it off. He sprinted over to the bush and helped pick berries into the bag.

 **0000000**

 **Deon sighed. "I wanna stay positive in any scenario, but… In hindsight, I should've just got us back with the team."**

 **0000000**

* * *

"You guys notice Leo and Deon's gone yet?" Yanna asked, not even looking back.

The team stopped and glanced around themselves, the pair being nowhere in sight..

"Pft! Are you serious?" Sneered Nora. "Those two goobers actually got _lost_? That's hella funny!"

"Shut the hell up!" Barked Sergio. "I say we send your ass to go get them!"

Nora cockily smirked. "You're still pissy about earlier?"

Nora snickered to herself as she ignored Sergio furiously cracking his knuckles, on the brink of starting a fight.

"Woah there, big guy." Bronco placed his hand on his shoulder. "Let's turn your attention there to the challenge." Bronco turned to his teammates. "Now, those two were just here a minute ago. Anyone wanna go fetch them?"

"I'll go! I'll go!" Fynn bounced up and down.

"You sure you wanna go alone?" Bronco raised a brow.

"Um…" Fynn paused then gleamed up. He tugged at Keone, looking up at the wolf with star eyes. "Wanna come with me, Keone? Pretty please?"

Keone raised a brow. He looked at his teammates who waited on his response to the tiny energetic mouse. The Lycanroc groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll tag along…" He sighed.

"Alright!" Jumped the Dedenne.

"We'll stop here and wait. Go ahead, you two." Said Alexandria, leaning herself against a tree.

"'K! We'll back faster than you can say 'teamwork!'" Fynn waved happily before sprinting off.

"Gimme a break…" Mumbled Keone as he walked off after him.

As the two wandered off through the thickets and bushes they've already traversed through, the rest of the Diehard Wailords took a breather and relaxed themselves.

"You don't think they're too lost, do you?" Icelyn asked in concern.

"They're bound to come back in little to no time."Joseph said, sitting cross-legged on the ground. "Like Bronco said, they weren't gone for even a few minutes."

"I'm sure we won't even lose ten minutes, let alone those two." Assured Momilani.

"Losing Leo wouldn't be a big loss anyways!" Joked Paisley. "It'd technically just be a heavy loss. Hee hee!"

"Disrespecting a teammate, hm?" Momilani raised a brow. "We need each member for better chances of winning, you know. Though maybe not you…"

"Yes! Comeback Queen comin' through!" Laughed Paisley.

"You're just juvenile…" Momilani rolled her eyes.

"What's wrong, Queen Nothing?" Paisley tilted her head.

Momilani got caught off guard. "Queen… Nothing?"

"You act so royal, but there's nothing even loyal to you, so you're the Queen of absolutely nothing! Therefore, you've earned the title of Queen Nothing! Hahaha!" Laughed Paisley, genuinely just being playful.

Momilani fumed and crossed her arms, getting red face as Paisley laughed away lightly. Any teammates around the two backed off cautiously.

"Why you little…" Seethed Momilani.

Suddenly, the bushes aside them started rustling loudly. The two quit from their shenanigans, startled by the ruffling. They nervously backed away, watching it with their teammates. Coming from the bush, a shrouded pair of white angry eyes emerged from within the bush.

"Crap… Guess there's someone else in these woods." Bronco worried.

Nora scoffed. "I bet it's a freak from the other team just stalking us."

"Seriously? This fool wants to try and jack our shit up?" Sergio smirked, stretching his arms out. "I'll take this weirdo out quick without a drop of sweat."

Suddenly, again, another pair of eyes emerged from the bushed. Then another set, then another, and quickly a heap of glaring eyes emerged from the bushes.

"U-Uh… I don't think the Gallant Sharpedos has _that_ many members…" Trembled Paisley, backing further away. "B-Bolt?"

"BOLT!" Sergio yelled, dashing off. His teammates screamed in panic as they fled away as well.

* * *

Keone whipped himself around, startled by the sudden shouts.

"What the hell…?" He said, bewildered. "Hey. Fynn. The hell was-"

He blinked when he noticed Fynn humming away as he continued sprinting away. Keone sighed and decided to just keep going. In just a short distance, they overheard the two missing members chatting away nearby. Fynn and Keone exchanged raised brows and pushed through the bushes to see them putting the last of the berries in the bag.

"Um…" Keone muttered, puzzled.

"Hi ya!" Fynn waved at them.

Deon glanced over, smiling in relief. "Hey there, guys!"

"Told you they'd wait for us!" Grinned Leo, nudging at Deon. "Look at what we found! A _berry_ big load of berries! Haha!"

Fynn just chuckled as Keone could only sigh. Deon zipped up the bag and swung in onto his back before he and Leo ran back up to join them.

"You guys ready to head out?" Deon smiled.

"Yeah, yeah…" Keone sighed, scratching his head.

The four headed out for the spot their team waited. However, once entering the clearing they rested at, not a single member was there waiting around. Fynn curiously glanced around as the other three were wide-eyed in shock.

"Where'd they go?" Asked Fynn. "Isn't this the spot?"

"T-This explains… those screams…" Keone clenched his paws, somewhat seething at himself.

"Aw man! Did we lose them or did they lose us!?" Panicked Leo.

"C-Calm down!" Said Deon, slight panicked himself. "I'm sure they've… decided to keep moving ahead! We were lagging behind and costing us some time!"

"If they moved forward, then we'll move forward too!" Fynn assured confidently. "Let's head out and regroup! 'Kay?"

Leo and Deon exchanged worried glances at first, but then smiled to reassure themselves. Keone groaned, sulking his head down low.

* * *

As the Diehard Wailords got separated, the Gallant Sharpedos continued their tiresome but rather calm walk through the forest. With the sun setting, they come across into a big enough clearing for them to set up camp.

"Can we… set up here… please…?" Wheat panted, tuckered out.

"You're tired already?" Quinn asked.

"Sorry… my stamina… isn't that good…" He panted before succumbing to his exhaustion and plopping down to the dirt.

"I certainly agree that camping here is good for the team's well being." Thurman agreed. He sat cross-legged aside to Wheat, rubbing his back in concern.

"We should keep going." Frowned Kimber. "We stop early, the other team can easily get further ahead than us."

"But if we rest early we can start early in the morning too." Thurman added. "Both body and spirit need their rest. We'll be full of tranquility and determination right in the morning. And this presents a perfect opportunity for the team to bond and-"

"Alright! Alright! Damn…" Kimber finally agreed, getting ticked off. She dropped her bag and kicked it away from her. "Anyone know how to pitch a tent?"

"Leave that to me." Smiled Thurman.

 **0000000**

" **Now** _ **this**_ **is a challenge that I may peak in. With the outdoors and good friends around, our harmony can truly flourish." Thurman smiled, eyes peacefully shut.**

 **0000000**

" **That dude's gotta be on somethin, man… Heh…" Joked Muriel. She used her hairlike arms to tied themselves together. She chuckled creepily as her hair was stuck in a poorly done knot. "Ahh. Two becomes one."**

 **She attempts to open the door with her knotted arms, but leaned too forward and fell over onto the floor.**

" **Hah hah. Gross…" She said amused.**

 **0000000**

Tired of fleeing, the Diehard Wailords paused and took a heavy breather.

"Crap… Okay… Think we're good now…" Bronco tiredly said between pants.

"We, uh… oh dear…" Icelyn said worriedly.

"Arceus, we just forgot four of our own teammates." Joseph groaned, pinching his nose.

"Nothin' but teamwork." Yanna joked nonchalantly, still caught up with her book.

"Shut… the hell up…" Glared Sergio, hunched over out of breath.

"Oh. My bad." Shrugged the Abra.

"The hell we gonna do now, huh?" Nora asked annoyed, cracking her back.

"We'll just… have to keep going." Bronco proposed. "We should get the flag, then we'll rush back to get them."

"We're gonna have to keep running around during the _night_!?" Asked Paisley. "But that's hella tiring, you know!"

"Hate to put some blame on somebody, but that Leo and Deon were the ones who slacked outta the pack. It's on them for gettin' separated." Said Bronco.

"Icelyn doesn't agree to accuse anyone until the challenge is over." She said determined. "Whether we're held back or not, Icelyn thinks we should keep aiming to overcome any obstacle to win for everyone!"

Her teammates were taken back in surprise but in awe as well. Her words hit the team precisely with facts.

"Yeah, this chick's got the right idea!" Sergio grinned. "Let's keep going!"

"I do prefer one for all than all for one…" Nodded Momilani, pleased by the Lilligant's words. "Shall we keep moving forward?"

"Alright!" Cheered Paisley.

With the positive vibes coming in, over with the missing group, the negative vibes were just to keep coming.

"Shit…!" Keone spat, glancing around.

" _Whashu wron, bro_?" Leo asked, sloppily munching on a juicy Pinap Berry.

"I'm feeling it… We're in someone's territory…" Keone replied, eyeing his surroundings.

" _O shi-_ " Leo almost shouted, but got his mouth covered by Deon.

"H-How much further until we're out of their territory." Trembled Deon.

"This whole forest could be theirs." Keone grunted. "That piece of garbage Wes…"

"It can't be that bad, right?" Asked Fynn.

"I'm sure… whoever's in here would rather hurt Wes than some innocent teenagers…" Deon gulped cowardly. "A-And the producers wouldn't get us hurt! We're still minors!"

"F-For all we know, some big monstrous Pokemon could've stolen and feasted on our team!" Leo yelled, completely terrified.

"What!? Our team's been gobbled up, just like that!?" Fynn asked, utterly shocked.

"H-Hold on!" Deon interjected. "T-There's no way we'd just get left to _die_ , okay?"

"B-But it's a eat or be eaten world!" Leo gasped.

"Not… really?" Keone looked at him oddly.

"W-We're gonna be fine! No one's getting eaten while we're here!" Deon assured rather nervously.

Suddenly, a tree nearby collapsed. The already startled four froze. One by one, getting closer and closer, trees were toppling over with the sounds of deep growls erupting.

"Oh my Arceus! Bail! BAIL!" Leo shouted, running away shouting along with Fynn.

"D-Darnit…!" Yelled Deon, running away frightened.

Keone slightly sweated, taking a stand yet unsure what to do. However, with the falling trees approaching, he decided to run after his teammates but cautiously kept glancing behind himself.

* * *

With night time falling, the two teams respectively set up their campsites. Over with the Gallant Sharpedos, their two big tents were pitched up and ready for use. Together, however, the tents weren't spacious enough for all the members.

"Um, should the boys in one tent, and girls in the other?" Celeste asked.

"That's rational." Nodded Thurman.

"T-The tents don't look big enough for the whole group in general…" Dusty brought up.

"Um… Any volunteers for sleeping out here?" Wheat shrugged unsurely.

"Dibs~" Said Muriel, already snug with dangling from a tree branch by her hair.

"The tents can hold probably up to five of us; six if no one minds losing any gaps of personal space." Bonnie shrugged.

"The hell? You speak?" Kimber raised a brow. She nodded over at Grey. "Thought it was just the Houndoom over there."

Grey blushed and sulked his head low in embarrassment. Since she was too small to even see his back, she patted him behind the leg to weakly comfort him.

"Does anyone object to squeezing six of us in there?" Quinn asked.

"I have not a single objection to the dilemma." Sascha responded seriously.

"A-And Hugo doesn't either!" Hugo stuttered.

 **0000000**

" **These Alolans are definitely the odd ones out in this dump." Kimber scratched her head. "'Cept that mutt over with the Wailords. At least he's got his shit reasonable."**

 **0000000**

"Since there's only six of us," spoke Torvald, "I'm sure we can fit us in there!"

Grey bit his lip, unsure of himself in the moment. Rosie noticed this and tapped his leg.

"U-Um, d-do you wanna say something?" She asked.

The Houndoom raised a brow in thought, before shaking his head. Rosie whimpered, trying to think of something else.

"U-Um, maybe… you'd like to stay out here…?" Rosie flinched, ready to hear she's wrong.

However, Grey nodded to her guess. Rosie let out a sigh and smiled in relief.

"Y-You're staying out here?" Asked Dusty.

Grey nervously hesitated, but nodded in response.

"Guess there'll be the five of us in the tent." Shrugged Thurman.

"You sure you wanna sleep outside? We'll make some room in there just enough for the whole bunch of us!" Offered Wheat.

Grey nervously shook his head.

"Guess that's settled then." Smirked Quinn. "For the girls, I'll take the night out here. Feel free to get comfortable…"

She winked over at Grey, making the canine madly blush. He fell down to the ground, covering his red hot face in embarrassment.

"I, too, shall sleep casted by the stars." Sascha spoke up.

"That makes just four in the tent then. Are you three sure?" Celeste asked in concern.

"Nothing to worry about. We'll be fine." Quinn confidently assured.

Sascha humbly nodded. Muriel just quietly snoozed away hanging from her branch, sucking a glob of drool in and out of her mouth.

"Sleepy time, then!" Torvald smiled and clasped his hands over his head. However, his stomach growled loudly. He chuckled in amusement. "Overlooked dinner!" He grinned. "Let's go eat!"

"Tch." Kimber huffed, arms crossed. "Is _one_ bag full of berries gonna suffice?"

"There could be a stream nearby. Maybe we could fish up a meal." Suggested Quinn.

"Yes!" Thurman brightened up. "We could ask the Pokemon living there to help us gather even more berries! We could get their help to find fresh herbs too! Such a miraculous idea." He felt delighted at the thought.

"I'm sensing a stream full of Remoraid about a hundred meters over there!" He pointed to his left. "They're sure to help!"

"I think… the idea was to eat them." Bonnie nonchalantly said, brushing aside the curl of her scarf-like fur.

Thurman paused, absolutely horrified. Kimber smirked amused seeing his face.

"Don't worry. We'll nab just enough for the night." Kimber noted, cracking her neck cockily. "I'll just get 'em. Heh. Shouldn't even take a full ten minutes to bring back enough for the group."

"Oh, I'll come along! I'd like to collect some herbs and try to make that tea I promised earlier." Smiled Celeste.

"Just don't get all environmental like hippie boy…" Kimber joked before heading out with Celeste in tow.

"Oh… I have doomed those poor souls…" Thurman groaned into his paws.

* * *

Bronco pitched the only tent they had on them as the others idled around. Paisley groaned as she tiredly rubbed her rumbling belly.

"Man, my stomach's gonna wither away in there…" She groaned, poking at her stomach.

Sergio scoffed. "Someone's gotta get out there and hunt! This bod's gonna soften up without any protein."

"Pft! Your body's already soft…" Nora joked, leaning relaxed against a tree.

Sergio cracked his knuckles, ticked off and red-faced. Paisley however found the insult amusing and was giggling to herself.

" _Oh_!? You want some too, ya pink punk!?" Seethed Sergio.

Momilani, annoyed at her, elbowed Paisley. " _Don't you dare provoke him any further!_ " She whispered.

"But the joke was funny!" Laughed Paisley.

"Well getting him angry isn't a laughing matter!" Glared Momilani.

"Hmm… I'm not seeing a problem in it. It's just funny!" Said Paisley, truly confused in the argument.

"We should've just voted your loud mouth out last time." Frowned Momilani. "It's easy to see you will be nothing than a devious little gremlin while you're here!"

Paisley giggled. "Man, the passion in your jokes is really heating up! I'm impressed!"

"Is everything a joke to you? Why!?" Seethed Momilani. The rest of the team were honestly starting to get terrified with the exchange, backing away anxiously. "You're nothing more than an immature, no-heart no-soul clod!" She continued yelling.

"Nice one!" Laughed Paisley.

"No! You know what?" She kept getting fed up with her. "I speak for everyone that we all collectively do not tolerate you and your misdemeanor! So please, just _zip it_ and keep your foul language to yourself!"

To the team's surprised, instead of laughing away or giggling like it's all one joking manor, Paisley dropped her smile. Her face paused, absolutely horrified. Then, she angrily kept tapping her tail's orb tip against the ground, absolutely furious as her face got complete flushed.

"Everyone… DOES NOT HATE ME!" She shouted. "That's a complete lie, you piece of trash!"

"Really? You really believe that?" Scoffed Momilani. "Because you got another thing coming, _gremlin_!"

"What the actual fuck is going on…?" Yanna asked, genuinely terrified.

"We're… not gonna sleep any sleep at the moment…" Sighed Bronco. "Damn it all…"

Fynn sighed. "I wish we were with the others. I bet they're having a blast."

"Hey, it's alright!" Deon playfully nudged him. "We'll catch up with them at some point. I'm sure they're just relaxing like us."

" _Yeah. 'Relaxing'..._ " Mumbled Keone, pitching up the tent.

"D'aw! It's okay, Keone! At least this challenge isn't so challenging!" Fynn gleamed optimistically.

"I'll be honest," said Keone tiredly, not even looking away from the tent, "and say that this whole island's just one big mess of a challenge."

"C'mon, dude. It's not one hundred percent bad." Insisted Deon. "Maybe Wes puts us through, well, _BS_ , but this show's a once in a lifetime opportunity! We get to make good friends _and_ get the chance to score half a million bucks! That's a pretty sweet deal to me."

"Sorry not sorry, but… not even the shit cash is worth being here…" Finished Keone, pounding the tent's last stake into the ground with his fist.

"What do you mean?" Fynn tilted his head confused.

Keone scoffed. "No one's gonna try and know me, with or without the spoils…"

"Oh! I would! I would!" Jumped Fynn.

Keone paused and tiredly glanced at him. Deon bit his lip, waiting for the response as Fynn just chuckled excitedly.

"...sympathy isn't gonna do me much." The Lycanroc said before plopping himself against a tree, dragging out a sigh. "I'll stay out here for the night…"

Fynn dropped his chuckling, exchanging worried looks with Deon. Leo, suddenly, came emerging out from some bushes piled with more berries onto his arms.

"Found a ton more!" Leo announced. "Man, if we're finding this much, the others probably have a whole fortress of food!"

"Nice!" Deon smiled in acknowledgement. "Guess we're set for the whole weekend."

"Unless I eat it all!" Laughed Leo.

Fynn and Deon laughed along. Keone rolled himself over to complete face away from them.

 **0000000**

" **It's not that hard to tell." Keone said, leaning against the wall arms crossed. "They're just trying to be optimistic of me. Tch! For** _ **once**_ **, just gimme a damn break…"**

 **0000000**

 **Sergio angrily kneed the wall of the confessional.**

" **Damn, our team fucking** _ **sucks**_ **!" He yelled. "The other team better be losing their shit too!"**

 **0000000**

Hugo hummed away while placing the last of the rock chunks around the pile of sticks and branches as Bonnie tossed in a few more sticks without a word or complaint. The two backed away as Torvald held out his ignited stick wand, giggling as he tapped the pile and lit the campfire.

"Woo hoo!" Cheered Wheat.

"Alright. Let's get cooking." Said Kimber, holding out a lot of freshly killed Remoraid bundled together.

"C-Can't we think of an alternative meal!?" Thurman defended.

"You know the rule: _if it doesn't speak, we get to eat_." Kimber hungrily licked her lips. Without looking away from the Remoraid, she reached her paw out. "Torvald. The stick."

Torvald happily obliged and lightly tossed her his wand. Kimber tied them by the split of the stick and held them over the fire, starting to slowly cook them.

As Kimber stood up roasting the fish pokemon, Torvald restfully sat by the fire right next to Hugo, who found the fire's warmth to feel soft on his rocky hands. Celeste sat nearby guiding Dusty into carving a wooden kettle using his large claws, much to his peaked embarrassment. Thurman sighed and sat cross-legged by the fire, honing his aura to relax himself. Bonnie and Rosie sat by the fire as well, not talking as the Budew tiredly watched the fire and the Meowstic just boredly looked up at the night sky. Tuckered out, Wheat laid inside the guys tent snoozing away.

"...gotta admit. This ain't much of a challenge." Kimber commented.

"It's nice to have such a calm challenge for once." Smiled Celeste, guiding Dusty's claw to carve around the wood chunk. "This aroma… it has the scent of the trees, the nice roasting Remoraid, and the quiet breeze bringing in a delicate draft from our collective 's quite beautiful"

"It's calm for once…" Bonnie spoke, still eyeing the stars without much emotion.

Celeste nodded. "Not hurting ourselves is quite relaxing. Oh, Dusty! Carve around it, slowly but with a bit of pressure."

"G-Got it…" Dusty stuttered, barely collecting himself to do so.

In front of a tree, Grey tiredly laid himself flat as he anxiously watched his team enjoying themselves. He looked ready to let out a heavy sigh.

"Enjoying the view?" Quinn asked, standing next to him. "Because I certainly am~" She winked.

Grey, absolutely flustered, covered his eyes with his paws and shivered nervously. Quinn just chuckled before reclining right next to him. She lightly purred as she got herself comfortable aside to him. She giggled and nuzzled her face against his.

"You've got the charm of a charmer, Grey…" She purred, making him whimper in embarrassment.

Startling her, Sascha rested herself on the other side of Grey, blushing as she laid her by his. Quinn sighed and rolled her eyes.

"And you're trying to…?" Questioned Quinn.

"I wish to shield him from your intrusion is all…" Blushed Sascha, eyeing away from her. "You're corrupting his personal space…"

"'Corrupting' huh?" Smirked Quinn. "I'm just relaxing with him. No harm to it."

 **0000000**

 **Quinn smirked in amusement. "Hmph. She gives him mouth to mouth to save his life and gets a little crush. Sorry Sascha, but once I get my eye on the prize, it's hopeless for anyone else to get it…"**

 **0000000**

" **What the common folk here call… a 'crush'." Said Sascha, too embarrassed to face the camera. "I believe I've caught wind of the sensation. It's… confusing to me, but since the start of this show's journey, the Houndoom appeals to my own heart. I… hope it wavers itself to nonexistence…"**

 **0000000**

Having given the tent to the rest of the girls, the remaining boys tiredly stayed back as Momilani and Paisley continued to argue with each other. The Primarina, despite being exhausted, never eased up and continued berating Paisley for her behavior. Paisley shouted to her level but only yelled out words in her own defense with an occasional insult thrown in.

"This. _Fucking. Blows._ " Fumed Sergio, lying flat on the ground and staring up at the sky. "Leave it to the chicks to do this kinda shit…"

"Shut the hell up, man…" Groaned Bronco, tiredly sliding against a tree.

"Your sexist behavior aside…" Said Joseph, still standing up albeit tiredly. "Is the tent dulling out their argument… at _all?_ " He asked over at the girls.

"Afraid not…" Icelyn sighed. "Icelyn wants to break the fight up, but Momilani's kind of scaring me…"

"Pft! _Momilani_ is?" Said Nora. "All she does is bark for attention. What in the hell is there to be scared about?"

"Icelyn does not wish to discriminate against her, but… Out of the whole team, she hasn't been quite the team player…" Admitted Icelyn.

Alexandria sighed. "Egotistic, sitting around doing nothing… It's as if she thinks she's on the same level here as Wes…"

"Paisley may be a bit… _rude_ , but she certainly means well for the team. Icelyn can see her doing a challenge more than Momilani…" Said Icelyn, tiredly taking a peek at the two arguing.

" _Arceus,_ just shut the hell up already!" Snapped Nora. Her shout, of course, went unrecognized by the bickering duo. "UGH!" She groaned, slamming her face against the floor.

"I'm not going to lie; I'm legitimately terrified by this…" Yanna said nonchalantly, lying down calmly with her book covering her face.

"Looking at it, Paisley's _only_ conflicted with Momilani." Added Alexandria. "If anything, Paisley could be fine if Momilani didn't provoke her foul language."

"The Queen of Shitsville is just outright annoying!" Nora growled. "I say we cut her out! Kick her outta here the moment we frickin' lose!"

"It's fair to agree to that…" Nodded Alexandria.

"Icelyn wishes her well, but… it seems to be the best for the team." Sighed the Lilligant.

"I'll join in on that vote…" Agreed Yanna.

Alexandria smirked and glanced over at Nora, who exchanged a devious snicker.

 **0000000**

" **With Joseph and beefheart's votes, we'll get that whiny princess outta here faster than she can cry!" Cackled Nora.**

 **0000000**

" **Nora may not see it, but there's importance to Momilani's elimination." Alexandria said slyly. "Between Paisley and her, she's got an unpredictable factor:** _ **pride**_ **. I can see the Primarina doing whatever it takes to get her way. With the alliance intact, we can't have someone causing their own trouble…"**

 **0000000**

With the sun just about rising, Celeste fluttered her eyes open. She stretched her arms out and yawned. The Mienshao glanced around, smiling from her team sleeping around. The tent was still and quiet with very light snores, Muriel hadn't moved an inch from her hanging position, and Sascha slept cozily aside to Quinn. Celeste chuckled quietly.

"They've become quite the friends…" She groggily joked.

She glanced behind her, smiling at Dusty resting quietly against a tree with the carved makeshift kettle still in his claws.

"I should start their morning off with some nicely brewed tea." Celeste said delighted.

Groaning tiredly, Bronco tiredly slumped even further against his tree. Momilani and Paisley were sitting behind two neighboring trees, cross armed and pouting as they were still upset despite their exhaustion. Though the two quit their nonstop argument hours ago, there was still the occasion brief argument that would last for a few grueling minutes, keeping him awake. He tiredly looked around, seeing Joseph and Sergio passed out completely, with no sounds coming from the tent either.

 **0000000**

" **Those two bickered and bickered all night…" Groaned Bronco, slumping tiredly. "Keep this up, and they might cost us game after game. We might have to ditch one of them if we hope to win…"**

 **0000000**

Bronco stood up, cracking his back and stretching his tail out. He mumbled to himself, walking over to Sergio. He lightly tapped him against his ribs using his foot, getting the Machoke to groan out in annoyance.

"Just a couple more hours, man…" He groaned.

"Ey. You're the 'athletic' type, right?" Asked Bronco. "You can't climb one of them trees there and scope out the cliff Wes mentioned?"

"Ugh…" Sergio groaned, wiping his face in exhaustion. "Fine. But you owe me one…"

Bronco rolled his eyes. "Yeah. I'll treat ya to soda pop or something…"

The Machoke kicked himself straight up, stretching and twisting his arms. He spat on the ground before shimmying up a tree in quick speed. After a pause, he jumped back straight down from the peak, not even feeling hurt in his feet.

"Did you see it?" Bronco raised a brow.

"Yeah, yeah, I see it…" Sergio tiredly scratched his head. "Shouldn't take us twenty minutes to reach that shit…"

"Nice!" Bronco smirked. "Wanna come with real quick to nab our flag?"

"As if." Grunted Sergio, lying back down on the dirt. "I'm knocking back out."

"Can you at least tell the others to pack up the tent and get ready while I get the flag?" Bronco asked.

"Whatever, whatever…" Sergio yawned before falling right back to sleep.

Bronco smacked his face and went over to the tent, deciding not to even bother Joseph. He zipped the tent open, sticking his head in. Everyone in there was snoozing away peacefully.

"Uh, let's see here…" Bronco murmured. " _Ahem_." He coughed.

Waking up, albeit in a daze, only Icelyn woke up. She rubbed her eyes tiredly before blinking at Bronco.

"Ah. Is it morning time?" She asked.

"Afraid so." Shrugged Bronco. "Can you help me out here?"

Icelyn tiredly smiled and nodded before carefully tip-toeing through her teammates to get out. She brushed her leaf bang out of her eye as she stood up.

"What can Icelyn assist with?" She tiredly smiled.

"Sergio spotted the cliff not too far from here. I could use your help to come grab it." Said Bronco.

The Lilligant nodded. "Icelyn is more than happy to help!"

"Alrighty then. Let's head out and bring back the win!" Bronco smiled and raised his hand. Icelyn giggled and returned the high five.

* * *

Still lying in the tent, Deon fluttered his sore eyes open. He groaned as he sat up. He groggily gazed around himself, noticing his other tentmates were gone. He immediately rushed out of the tent, but sighed in relief seeing Leo and Fynn sitting on the ground eating away at their berry reserves. Keone still leaned against a tree, chomping on a Pinap Berry.

"Oh man, I got worried for a second. Heh heh…" Deon sheepishly chuckled.

"It's all good! We're just snacking away on these _berrylicious berries_!" Joked Leo. "I even found some mushrooms growing nearby!"

"Woah! Is that even a safe idea!?" Deon asked in concern.

"Don't worry! I love going around just eating, so I know my mushrooms!" Assured Leo. He held out a white ball-like mushroom. "This is the puffball mushroom without a doubt!"

Leo split it and tossed it over one half to Fynn, who didn't hesitate to try it. As they both chewed, Leo hummed in delight though the Dedenne found himself uncertain by the taste.

"This tastes a bit funky…" Fynn frowned.

"These things are much better deep fried!" Grinned Leo. He picked up two more orange mushrooms. "Orange milkcaps! I _really_ wished they tasted like oranges or milk…" He drooled.

He passed one to Fynn, scarfing his down as the Dedenne curiously nibbled on his.

"Are you sure you should put that much trust in some random mushrooms?" Deon asked.

"I do it all the time, and I rarely get stomachaches from them! It's fine, dude." Leo confidently waved him off. "Now these next ones are good too!"

Him and Fynn grabbed two mushrooms with caps similar to that of a poke ball. Leo tossed his entire mushroom into his mouth as Fynn just sunk his teeth into his.

" _Yeowch_!" A shrill voice cried out.

"Huh?" Fynn raised a brow, putting down his shroom. He yelped seeing it was a Foongus. The little mushroom was on the verge of tears as it tried to reach its stubby arms to rub its head.

"Why would you do that…? Why would you do something so mean to me during my nap…?" It sniffed.

Before Fynn could even react, the Foongus cried out and released its toxic spores onto him. Fynn gagged and fell back, trying to rub off the spores.

"F-Foongus…?" Deon stuttered out in fear.

He turned to Leo. The Munchlax was stuck in place as his eye twitched. His jaw dropped with a Foongus angrily jumping out.

"Don't lay a tooth or tongue on us ever again, meanie!" It shouted before running off with the other one.

Leo groaned as he fell over, his body slightly fading into a faint purple. Fynn coughed out as his body started sickening out.

"Shoot!" Deon shouted, running to Leo's side. "Keone! We gotta do something quick!"

In a blur, the Lycanroc zoomed over to Fynn. He picked him up, grunting when he could see his poison status worsening.

"Alright screw the challenge! They need first aid!" Keone shouted before dashing off.

"Wait! Not that quick!" Deon pleaded, trying to pick up the heavy Munchlax.

Leo barely budged as he groaned out sickly. Deon looked around, Keone alright out of sight.

"Oh no…" The Gallade groaned. "I don't even remember the exact way back…"

Deon held onto Leo's feet, grunting as he started dragging the notorious glutton.

"C'mon! We gotta move, dude!" He grunted, barely able to drag him off.

* * *

Bronco and Icelyn emerged out from some trees, closely seeing the not so big cliff. On top, their flag marked with their team insignia fluttered on its pole.

"Reckon I can climb up there lickety split." Said Bronco.

"Um… Bronco?" Icelyn tapped his shoulder, pointing at the base of the cliff.

Bronco took notice as well. Right in front of them, a pole was lying broken on the ground with the flag not even attached.

"Did they beat us…?" Asked Bronco.

"Icelyn thinks… they might be staying here." Icelyn suggests, pointing out the nets of berries and Remoraid hanging from the cave's ceiling.

" _Shoot…_ " Whispered Bronco. " _Not only was their flag quick to get, but they got the cave to cozy themselves in."_

" _We should hurry and retrieve our flag…_ " Icelyn suggested.

" _...now I may be a team player, but I'm thinkin of a little, well, sabotage right now._ "

" _Hey!_ " Frowned Icelyn. _"Icelyn does not condemn meddling with other people._ "

" _Don't worry. We ain't personally gonna mess with them._ " He smirked. " _We just nab some of their rations for ourselves. They've certainly got the food to spare_ "

Icelyn thought for a moment. " _Hmm… You know what, Icelyn can agree to that! A competition is a competition after all!_ "

Bronco shot her an agreed thumbs up. He nodded over to the nets, before scurrying himself over to the cliff. Icelyn nodded back and rushed over to the cave. She placed her leaf hand against the walls, using Grass Knot to extend leaves over to the net's basing, slashing off two nets of Sitrus and Lum Berries. Bronco hopped back down, holding the pole with their flag.

" _Ready to head back?_ " Smirked Bronco.

" _Indeed!_ " She nodded.

Suddenly, an echoing violent roar erupted from the cave. The two jumped back startled.

" _Holy- that was that Kimber girl wasn't it!?_ " Bronco whisper shouted.

"Let us not find out!" Panicked Icelyn, grabbing a net and running off.

"Right behind ya!" Bronco followed, holding onto a net and the flag.

The violent roar continued to get louder as they fled from the cave.

 **0000000**

" **Icelyn never enjoyed this rush of danger!" Icelyn clapped delightfully. "This island is so full of adventure!"**

 **0000000**

Momilani rubbed her sore neck, eyeing around their campsite. She glared over at Paisley, sleeping while faced away from her.

"Why does the team take your behavior so lightly…" She mumbled to herself.

She jumped having gotten startled when Bronco and Icelyn came rushing in. Bronco panted, frowning at Sergio.

"C'mon, man! I told you to get everybody ready." He yelled.

"Not my problem dude…" Sergio murmured, rolling over.

A roar erupted from the forest, stronger than the roar before. Joseph shot straight up wide-eyed.

"What was _that_!?" He asked, startled.

"No time for questions. We gotta move!" Bronco advised as he continued running off with Icelyn.

Joseph kicked Sergio in the gut, making him cough out and glare.

"What's the matter with you!?" He yelled.

"It's run and hunt. You either get to _run_ , or get _hunted_. Better choose now." Joseph told him before running off himself. "Everyone in the tent! You better run!"

With another roar thundering from the forest, Sergio freaked out and made a dash for it. Nora stumbled out, briefly getting caught on the tent opening before rolling out and making a run for it as well. Yanna and Alexandria jumped out, hearing another roar scream out.

"I say forget the tent." Suggested Yanna before running off.

"Agreeable." Alexandria said following behind.

Momilani tried to run away, but she noticed Paisley still lying on the ground. She groaned before rushing over to her. She picked her up, practically cradling her, and did the best she could to run for it on land. Paisley stretched her arms, yawning out loud.

"O-Oh. Hey there, your majesty!" She tiredly joked. "What's going on?"

Momilani scoffed. "We're running away. And don't ignore your 'tantrum' from last night."

"Wha? What happened last night?" Paisley tilted her head confused.

"What, you don't remember anything from last night?" Momilani rolled her eyes.

"I can't even remember falling asleep! Tee hee!" Paisley giggled, earning a sigh from the Primarina.

 **0000000**

" **I'm totally garbage at making up lies…" Paisley sheepishly admitted, rubbing her arm. "She didn't mean it, but… Someone's told me what she said before, about the 'no one cares about you' thing and… it's just a nightmare to remember getting shitted on like that." Paisley sighed. "Past is past. I shouldn't let it get to me. I just hope the team can understand…"**

 **0000000**

Celeste heard the echoes from the roaring. She stood up petrified, holding her hands together in worry.

"I can already smell the hostile scent…" She gulped. "I hope the other team didn't get hurt… Woah!"

The ground trembled violently, startling everyone awake. Wheat and Thurman rushed out of their tent frightened by the shaking earth.

"W-W-What's going on here!?" Stuttered out Wheat, barely able to balance himself.

Quinn stood herself up, grasping onto the dirt to hold herself steady. Sascha fell onto her side, just lying there anxiously.

"What're you doing!?" Quinn questioned her tactic.

"I-In an earthquake, I lay flat to avoid any fumbling!" She responded in panic.

The ground shaking came to a halt, worrying everyone for a moment before they relaxed in relief. However, one of the bigger trees surrounding them was slashed down. Before it could topple over, it was kicked in and flew into their campsite. Dusty, resting against a tree, was barely waking up.

"Huh? Is there something happening…?" He groggily asked.

The flying tree suddenly sandwiched him against his tree, getting a painful yelp out of the Sandslash.

"Ow…" He groaned out.

Jumping onto the stump, an Ursaring glared menacingly at the campers. Completely ticked off, it growled as it sharpened its claws against each other.

"I-It appears we were not alone in this forest…" Stammered Thurman.

Their team gathered together, facing the angry bear. The Ursaring didn't ease up with its growling, glaring them down.

"W-What do we do?" Stuttered Hugo.

"Oh yeah. I got this." Smirked Kimber, stepping up from the group. "Ey. _Brethren_. Why not come at me and get your shit pushed in! C'mon!"

Its growl quickly turned into a roar, making about everyone recoil back. Then, more glaring Ursaring showed up, lining up around the whole group all deeply growling. Kimber turned back to her team, slightly sweating.

"I… I can't beat up this many…" She said straight faced, still sounding nervous.

"R-RUN!" Screamed Dusty.

"Scatter out!" Quinn shouted.

They all went different directions, trying to spread themselves out to avoid all of them getting taken down. Muriel, already distanced from her tree, leaped down and easily made a run for it. Grey tossed Rosie on his back, and dashed through the bears. Thurman and Celeste rolled between them, barely escaping their grasp. In a panic, Dusty clawed his way at the dirt and burrowed himself underground. Wheat jumped in after him, rolling after him. Sascha pounced on an Ursaring, leaping off them to run away. Muriel, chuckling in delight, phased through an Ursaring and easily fled.

Some of them weren't so lucky to escape. Kimber tried to shove her way past the other Ursaring, but two of them angrily slammed their arms against her face. Knocked out, she fell back, where Bonnie was following right behind.

"Huh…" Bonnie said before Kimber fell on top of her.

Torvald, laughing away having fun in the situation, tried to run by them. However, an Ursaring easily swiped him by the ears, holding him up high.

"Hi ya!" He waved at them, ignoring their menacing glares.

Quinn tried to dash between two Ursaring, but was snatched back by her tail. She tried to slash at them with her Fury Swipes but promptly got elbowed in the gut, knocking the wind out of her.

Hugo, unsure of which way to run, found himself getting surrounded by the Ursarings.

"Uh oh…" He gulped.

* * *

Wes sat on a stump by the unlit bonfire, crossing his legs patiently as he sipped on a mug of freshly made hot chocolate. He peeked an open smirking at Keone running in with Fynn in his arms.

"First aid! _Now_!" He demanded.

Wes snapped his fingers. Lloyd phased from the ground, sighing exasperatedly.

"Follow me…" He sighed.

Keone grunted, having to slowly walk behind Lloyd. Passing him by, Keone growled at the host.

"Good teamwork, Keone. And good speed too…" Smiled Wes, taking another sip.

Keone spat on the trunk and carried along. Wes just smirked and rolled his eyes.

* * *

What's left of the Gallant Sharpedos finally stopped together, most of them worn out from their escape.

"I wanna do that again~" Muriel shivered in delight.

"I would… rather not…" Thurman panted.

"We gotta go back for 'em!" Wheat implored, determinedly wagging his tail.

"W-What about the challenge?" Dusty weakly asked.

"Without the team, I don't think there's any challenge to win! We gotta get 'em!" Wheat kept pressing further.

"He's right… We need the team as one. So we'll have to go back for them." Worried Celeste.

"B-But how could we get them back…! T-there were so many Ursaring…!" Rosie trembled.

" _I_ may have an idea…" Muriel creepily offered. Her teammates exchanged anxious glances with each other.

* * *

Dirty and sweating, Deon kept dragging his sick Munchlax companion. Leo sickly gurgled his own saliva, having kept slipping in and out of consciousness.

"Ugh… Where the heck… is the dang camp…" Whined Deon. "Arceus… I wanna cry really bad right now…"

" _Do you think… if I was a food… I'd be something munchy and crunchy… or soft and lax…_ " Leo groaned out before slipping unconscious again.

"Uhh…" Deon sighed.

* * *

The free Sharpedos popped their heads out from behind the cave's entrance, watching the Ursarings bind together their captured teammates. Kimber growled, glaring at the others Ursarings, Quinn and Hugo struggled to try and free themselves to no avail, Bonnie just sat there blankly staring ahead of her, and Torvald hummed to keep himself entertained.

"What the hell's the meaning of this!?" Quinn hissed at them.

"You disrespectful kids stole from our summer provisions!" One of them yelled. "We didn't mind the camp being built away from us, but now you want to come in and take away our belongings!? We will have _blood_!"

"N-Not literally, right?" Stuttered Hugo.

The remainder of the team huddled back to come up with a rescue plan.

"How do we go about this?" Asked Thurman.

"Muriel, you said you had a plan. Correct?" Celeste asked over to her.

"I've, liked, stored an infinite amount of different ideas in my head, just itchin' to get out~" She creepily stated. This just earned bewildered looks from her team. "But I've got one that'll make this quick."

After discussing her doubtful plan, the team kept hidden in a bush next to the cave. Suddenly, Rosie was nudged out, tripping over to the front of the cave.

"Rosie!" Gleamed Torvald.

"Oh my god…" Kimber groaned.

All the Ursarings shifted their attention to the Budew, who stood shaking in fear.

"Another thief!?" One of the bears shouted angrily.

One shout was all it took to make Rosie break down crying. She down down on her behind as she sobbed loudly. Thurman sighed and smacked his face.

"How does making the little one cry free the captured ones?" Frowned Sascha.

"Like this~" Said Muriel.

Her teammates gasped at what they saw. Every single Ursaring surrounded Rosie… all making attempts to comfort her. They frantically apologized, assured her it'll be okay, and even offered her packaged snacks.

"Why do they have convenience store snacks?" Wheat questioned, baffled.

"Doesn't mean they can't hit up a town once in awhile…" Smiled Muriel. "Someone fast enough should go cut them free."

"Dusty, you can quickly cut them loose with your claws." Celeste recommended to him.

"Ugh… A-Alright…" He said unsure of himself.

He quickly dashed on all fours into the cave, the rest of his teammates backing away quietly to not further alarm the Ursarings. Dusty snipped Quinn lose, who hurried and helped him cut the rest free. Without a word, they ran out of the cave around the huddled Ursarings. Celeste quickly jumped into the group, picking up the still sobbing Rosie.

"Sorry for the trouble! Contact me anytime and I'll make it up with some tea!" She apologized before rushing off. The Ursarings only waved back, still apologizing back to Rosie.

"Wait a sec!" Wheat realized, running off with his team. "We haven't even found or flag!"

"It's supposed to look like this, right?" Muriel smiled at their flag, holding it by her hair.

"When did you get that?" Asked Quinn.

"I found it in a cave just like that one last night." She shrugged carefree.

"Hugo is confused! Why didn't you show us earlier!?" Hugo asked, bewildered.

"Meh~" She shrugged again.

 **0000000**

" **S-She's so bizarre that it's actually** _ **easy**_ **to tell she isn't messing with us on purpose!" Said Dusty, baffled.**

 **0000000**

The sun was already setting, only Keone waiting by the firepit. He slouched tiredly on a stump, blankly watching the ignited wood in the fire pit cackle loudly. He barely looked up seeing his team come running in, despite them holding their flag.

"Oh sweet Arceus… We made it…" Panted Bronco.

"Has the other team… made it back?" Panted Joseph.

"Nope…" Muttered Keone, poking the fire with a branch.

"Holy crap…! Did we just beat those suckers!?" Asked Nora.

" _Not_ quite, Diehard Losers." Wes approached them, smiling proudly. "What good is the flag if they're isn't even a _team_."

"You blind!? We're all here!" Sergio angrily protested.

"Oh no… Where is the others?" Icelyn worriedly asked Keone.

"Fynn's getting Antidote for his poison…" Blushed Keone, looking away. "The other two, I don't know…"

"Aw, man! I don't wanna lose again." Whined Paisley, still in Momilani's arms.

The Primarina groaned and dropped her on the dirt, not caring about her pain. From the forest, the Gallant Sharpedos came rushing out, every member counted for along with their flag secured.

"Dammit!" Nora stomped. "Why couldn't you get chased down by some Beedrills or somethin!?"

"Please tell us… we got the damn victory…" Panted Kimber.

"You betcha!" Smirked Wes. "For the second time in a row, the Gallant Sharpedos win immunity!"

Despite his announcement, he only get a few tired 'whoos' from the team. Coming from the forest, Deon groaned out loud as he dragged Leo out.

"Arceus, man! What happened to you!?" Asked Bronco.

"It… It was my fault…" Sighed Deon. "I got us lost… I'm so sorry… But Leo really needs an Antidote right now…!"

On cue, Lloyd phased out of the ground, lifting the sick Munchlax up and mumbling away to fetch him the medicine.

"Well then, for tonight, I think a good enough reward for the Gallant Sharpedos is to get showered up and get some grub. So off you go!" Said Wes, sending them off. "And for your _second_ loss in a row, let's get you lined up to vote off your most hated camper! Chop chop, let's go!"

 **0000000**

" **I think I'll just keep my vote on Paisley…" Momilani crossed her arms. "Even if no one else will vote for her, I want her gone from my life for good…"**

 **0000000**

" **Smell ya later, princess." Nora cockily waved at the camera. "Cry me a river when you give us your sob story. Haha!"**

 **0000000**

" **Alexandria passed the info to us." Said Joseph. "Momilani can be the queen of her bedroom when she goes back home…"**

 **0000000**

" **Sorry Deon, but brother, ya really screwed us this challenge. No harsh feelings, man…" Said Bronco.**

 **0000000**

" **I don't wish any harm to Momilani." Paisley said sheepishly. "So… even though he's super nice, I'll put my vote on Deon…"**

 **0000000**

* * *

With the fire blazing nicely and the plate of stale multi-color marshmallows ready to go, Wes cracked his neck around ready to send someone off. Leo and Fynn, fully recovered, high fived each other in celebration of their own recovery.

"Alright, I've told you how we go about this." Smirked Wes. "Your votes have been casted. The sucker who sucked enough to get the most votes will be sent off, and they can never, _ever_ take another step on this island. You all clear about that?"

"Why not…" Muttered Keone.

"Alrighty then!" Wes nodded. "To start us off, why don't you grab the first marshmallow, wolfie?"

The Lycanroc scoffed and just tiredly went up to swipe a marshmallow off the plate.

"Fynn and Leo. You're immune today as well." Wes said.

The two exchanged multiple rapid high fives before running up to get their stale treats.

"Next is… Icelyn."

She gave him a tired smile and politely went to get her sweet.

"Yanna, you're good tonight."

The Abra nonchalantly shot him a finger gun before levitating her marshmallow over to herself, despite still walking up.

"Bronco, Alexandria; you two are safe."

The two just exchanged smirks before going up for their treats.

"Nora, Sergio. You two…? Safe."

" _Boom baby_!" Sergio shouted. Right as he was about confidently walk up, Nora snickered and tripped him making him fall flat on his face.

"Not hearing much of a boom from your fathead, but it'll do!" Snickered Nora, earning a scowl from the Machoke.

"I'll get you, you piece of shit!" He fumed, chasing after her. The two ran by Wes and snatched their own marshmallows.

"Next to be safe, without a doubt, is… Joseph."

The Sawk nodded before calmly getting his marshmallow.

"And the next marshmallow will go to… Paisley."

Paisley blinked in surprise, happily but tiredly obliged in taking her marshmallow.

"Of course…" Momilani rolled her eyes.

"Down to the bottom feeders…" Teased Wes. "Deon. According to yourself, you ruined your team's chances at winning this challenge by splitting you and Leo off. People around here wanna win, you know?"

Deon just sheepishly rubbed his neck. Leo bit onto his hand anxiously, worried for his friend.

"As for you," Wes turned to Momilani, "Miss Superior over here kept instigating Paisley and causing a ruckus that annoyed your team to no end. You also haven't really done a challenge since you've got here…"

"It's just bad luck…" She pouted.

"Well, tonight, one of you gets to stay as the other gets sent back home. We'll see how unlucky you really are." Smirked Wes. "The final marshmallow, for sure, goes to… Deon."

Deon sighed in relief before running up to get his marshmallow.

"What!?" Shouted Momilani in protest. "What have _I_ done to deserve this!?"

"Already told you…" Wes impatiently rolled his eyes.

"It's the truth, but you have too much bark and _exactly_ no bite. That's why you were voted off." Said Joseph.

"Guess there's no sugar coating it…" Bronco scratched his head. "Sorry girl, but we need team players. You're really bringing us behind…"

Momilani's eye twitched. However, she just let out an exhausted sigh.

"This truly wasn't me. For that, I apologize…" She said tiredly. "But please don't let… _her_ continue berating others." She called out Paisley.

"Maybe her words ain't from the best vernacular, but she's got the spirit to fit in here." Bronco stated. "Just start pullin' your own weight in the challenge, though…" He said to the Flaaffy.

"Sorry…" Paisley sheepishly apologized.

"Well, this chit chat's nice and all, but uh, for little miss loser over here, your rusty old boat's waiting, so… get lost already!" Wes frowned.

Momilani sighed, rubbing her aching forehead as she headed towards the dock.

 **0000000**

" **Great…" Sighed Momilani. "I've made a fool of myself on worldwide television… Just to clarify, I'm much more dignified than this!"**

" **As for a nomination, I think Icelyn should win. She elegant much like myself…"**

 **0000000**

As she got on her boat, Paisley ran up to the dock and yelled after her.

"Goodbye, Queen Nothing! Let's hang out on better terms next time!" The Flaaffy waved after her.

Momilani just let out a long exasperated groan as her boat drove away from the island.

"Well it seems our campers are just scraping the top of the drama barrel." Smirked Wes. "Who else will go at each other's throats? And who can stay in the game to win that succulent prize? Find out next time, on Pokemon! Drama! Island!"

* * *

 **13,000+ words! I'm really glad I got to reach this much in a chapter! I'm aiming for each chapter to at least be 10,000 words. I hope you enjoyed the chapter a lot! So until next time…**

 **See! Ya!**


	5. A Refreshing Blast of Water

**Hey! Ya!**

 **From here on, I'll stick with past tense. At some point, I might go back to change past chapters to past tense. It's definitely much more comfortable. Anyways, hope you enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

In her cabin, Paisley anxiously paced back and forth. She kept mumbling on and on while constantly keeping her gaze up at the ceiling. Yanna, the only other girl still in the cabin, sat silently on her bed with earbuds in and a book in her grasp. Without pausing her music or even glancing at her, the Abra spoke up.

"You alright there?" Yanna asked nonchalantly.

"Ooh…! I'm really, _really_ pissed at myself! I don't know _how_ , but I'm rubbing off the wrong way to some of you guys! I'm only joking around, but there's some kind of scummy words slipping out of my mouth, you know?" The Flaaffy ranted on about.

"...advice isn't my forte, so try and ask someone that's helpful enough to help you figure it out." Yanna advised.

"Oh!" Paisley immediately chimed. "I know who could definitely help! Thanks, Yanna!"

Paisley happily hurried out of the cabin, leaving Yanna to her book.

"...wonder what she said." She said to herself.

With low, halfhearted hums, Deon showered in the communal bathroom. Outside, Leo slouched himself upside down by the door, anxiously eating out of his bowl of sloppy gray oatmeal. He repeated in dipping his stubby hand into the bowl and proceeding to nervously suck the oatmeal off his own hand. Paisley ran over to him, ignoring his strange behavior at the moment.

"Where's Deon!?" She asked loudly.

"I-I-In the shower!" Leo stuttered, frightened by her sudden appearance. "I'm just waiting out here for him! That's it, I swear!"

"Um… I'm not mad at anyone though?" She said confused, before muttering to herself. "Though I'm mad at myself…" Paisley shook her head. "Can I wait here with you? I wanna talk to him."

"Sure, sure…" Leo anxiously waved her off. "B-But… I wanna say something really quick to him! Just before you go!"

"Ooh…!" She fidgeted. "I _really_ need his help right now…"

"Hey! Is something wrong guys?" Deon called out through the windows.

"Oh! Deon! I could use your help really bad right now!" She pleaded.

"B-But first, let me say something! It'll be fast like my metabolism!" Leo pleaded.

"What…?" Deon asked, not having heard their voices clearly from the shower. "Hold on! I'll be out there in a sec…"

Deon shut off the water and dried himself off in a hurry. He swung the towel around his neck and stepped outside, immediately getting bombarded by the two.

"Deon! I need your help right now!" Paisley asked of him.

"I just wanna say sorry, bro, for almost getting you booted outta here!" Leo apologized.

"W-Woah!" Deon shouted, taken back by their rushed voices. "H-Hold on! I'd love to help, but can I at least hear this stuff one at a time?" He asked of them.

"Can I go first? Please…?" Leo asked Paisley, giving her exaggerated puppy eyes.

"Okay, sure, but please hurry!" She replied, stepping back.

"Um… alright. So, uh, what's wrong Leo?" Deon asked his pleading friend.

"I-I'm so sorry, bro! Like, more sorry than the weight I'll have when I evolve!" He frantically apologized, hugging onto the Gallade's leg. "You blamed getting lost on yourself, and almost got voted off!"

Paisley, who anxiously idled by, blushed and pouted as she lightly kicked away at the dirt.

"A-And the team definitely lost because of us! It's my bad, bro!" Leo apologized, looking at him with teary eyes.

"Woah, it's okay! Really!" Deon assured him, feeling a bit awkward. "Well… I know I almost got the boot, but it doesn't matter that much to me. If I got eliminated, then so be it. I'm just here for fun, not for the prize money or famous achievement."

"B-But…" Leo stuttered out.

"Really, it's not biting at me. Plus… I'm here now, right?" Deon smiled at him.

"Y-You're right! You're here as much as much as my stomach is for me!" Leo joked, wiping away a tear.

"Yep! You got it, um… bro." Deon sheepishly joked. "Could you… stop hugging my leg? I can't really feel it at this point…"

Leo grinned and stepped back, leaving his now purple leg to start regaining its blood back. Deon turned to Paisley, still kicking the dirt and eyeing away from him.

"You need my help too… right?" Deon asked, rubbing his arm.

"Yes!" Paisley puffed her cheeks out, determined for his assistance.

"But what can I do to help? I'm not good at much…" Said Deon.

"I don't mind if you're crap at having any skills!" Smiled Paisley. "But you're very kind and helpful, so I need your help to deal with me!"

"W-With you?" He questioned.

"With me!" She nodded. "I know I'm rubbing off the wrong way to the team, and Momilani said there was some awful stuff I've been saying. So I need your help to figure out what I'm doing wrong!"

"Um… Well…" He hesitated nervously. "Like I said, I'm no professional at helping out, but… if you don't mind, I'll do my best to help you out." He smiled.

"Yay!" Paisley brightened up. She playfully smacked him on the knee, making him falter and almost kneel down from the imbalance. "Work hard with me, and I'll work hard with you!" She gleamed.

"Hey, hey! I can help out too!" Leo chimed in. "I'm packed with funny words and jokes to mix into your vocabulary!"

"But your jokes are shit?" She tilted her head, making him white-out, flabbergasted. "But… more help could totally work too! Okay, you're in too Leo!"

Leo immediately snapped out of it and pumped his arms. "Alright!"

 **0000000**

 **Unconfident about the situation, Deon scratched away at the back of his head.**

" **I usually help out with general stuff, like helping out with some task or trying to keep the mood up, not really specific stuff like helping out with someone's personality… I hope my best is good enough for her…"**

 **0000000**

Just barely into the forest, in a clearing with nothing but dull grass and a fallen tree covered in moss lying over it, a few Pokemon gathered around. Torvald hopped onto the mossy log, clasping his hands over his head.

"Alright!" He cheered. "With this, the summer fun time group is officially official!"

"Please do elaborate, Torvald. This already sounds like such a grand opportunity." Said Thurman, curious but thrilled.

"In this group, we'll socialize and help each other out with any problems but also have fun while we're doing it!" He merrily explained. "It's one small little harmony group!"

"What _specifically_ do we do…?" Celeste raised her hand.

"Whatever we want! Talk, play games, anything that's super fun!" Torvald smiled.

"This sounds wonderful, Torvald." Thurman nodded. "We'll achieve harmony much more beautifully this way."

"Isn't this just like an alliance?" Wheat asked.

"Not at all!" Thurman chuckled. "This group's established not for competition's sake, but for the sake of our well being! It's a fantastic gateway to new friendships and unity of all!"

" _Yep-Yep_!" Gleamed Torvald. "So, who wants to join us?"

"Without a doubt, I'll join! Haha!" Thurman laughed.

"As will I." Celeste smiled and nodded.

"Hey! Count me in too!" Wheat excitedly wagged his little tail. "How about you guys?"

Rosie and Grey, idling by without a word, hesitantly nodded in acceptance. Muriel, for some reason being there, rolled over sideways and laid flat on her head.

"Sounds like a way to get me company, so I'll get in on this~" She creepily accepted, trying to balance her lower body in the air.

"Okay then!" Torvald crossed his arms and nodded proudly. "We'll be known as the Sunlight Islanders!"

"Sunlight… Islanders?" Wheat questioned.

"Quite the name, Torvald!" Thurman rejoiced. "The name holds a very radiant meaning, and will be our key to harmony!"

"Coolio!" Torvald smiled, clasping his hands over his head. "Let's have our first hang out tomorrow then! 'Cause I really got to use the bathroom right now!"

"Haha. Same…" Muriel chuckled in agreement.

 **0000000**

" **This will truly be an experience for us all." Thurman nodded proudly.**

 **0000000**

Nora boredly fidgeted with a coin, waiting in the clearing that's become Moon Platoon's meeting spot. To pass the time, Sergio balanced on one arm and barely sweated to doing vertical push ups. Coming out, Alexandria and Joseph finally walked into the clearing.

"Tch! About damn time!" Sergio frowned, flipping onto his feet.

"Jeez! You two sure like taking your time. You making out or something?" Nora teased before snickering.

"Shut up." Joseph simply replied, Alexandria just rolled her eyes. "She wasn't easy to convince to meet today, for _some_ reason…" He threw her a glare.

"Meeting too often ups our chances in getting caught, you know…" She smirked.

"The hell are we meeting up for anyway?" Sergio crossed his arms.

"We're here to scout out any threats to get rid of." Joseph answered. "We need to prioritize the threats in our team and pick them off, leaving us and the weaker weeds with us."

Nora huffed. "Anyone in mind, _bossman_?"

"I'm thinking…" Joseph tapped his chin, "...we should take out Bronco first. I can tell he's a strong competitor. Best to get rid of him before he can form trust amongst others."

"If I may," spoke Alexandria, "I can advise a more successful layout to this…"

"Oh? Whatcha got, nerdo?" Nora smirked.

"Right now," said Alexandria, ignoring her, "we should aim to eliminate the ones with the _potential_ to become strong in the competition."

"Like an underdog?" Suggested Joseph.

"Along the lines." Alexandria shrugged. "With someone like Bronco, they'll be using their majority of their strength in the competition. Keep them around and they'll be easier to manipulate. But with someone like… Fynn or Leo, they could slip through and get untouchable later on."

Sergio scoffed. "Those wimps? A Wurmple could beat them up anyday."

"...maybe as of now." Alexandria said. "Later on, however, they'll wanna reach higher _and_ not even know they're leveraging the competition to their favor."

"What… do you mean?" Asked Joseph.

"First, someone unrecognizable could be overlooked and easily get higher in the rankings. Once they have to defend themselves, they'll be unpredictable to us since we've never seen them in action. They can easily dominate with their unseen skill." Explained Alexandria.

"And why even wait to take out a bigger threat, huh?" Nora questioned her.

"Easy. The more trust they earn along the way, the harder they fall when that trust is even questioned." She replied.

"Ugh… It's like getting answered by a teacher…" Sergio got annoyed.

"I can… agree to this." Joseph agreed to her plan. "Let's even have a test to see what we can do."

"A… test?" Alexandria raised a brow.

"Before a test can be made, there must be a subject for the matter of course." Continued Joseph. "Next challenge, I'll be on the lookout for someone."

Suddenly, the camp speakers blared out with a slight screech.

"ATTENTION CAMPERS! YOUR NEXT CHALLENGE WILL BEGIN SHORTLY! MEET ME IN FRONT OF YOUR CABINS!" Announced Wes.

"Guess I'll be looking for one today." Joseph turned away. "Let's go. Today's our last time we only stand by."

"Aw, yeah! Let's knock some heads!" Sergio pumped his arms, following Joseph out of the clearing. Nora groaned in annoyance as she followed suit. Alexandria frowned, placing her fin over her mouth.

 **0000000**

" **Joseph… What's he planning on doing?" Alexandria asked herself. "Just how irritating is he going to become…?"**

 **0000000**

* * *

Both teams gathered in front of their cabins followed by Wes and Lloyd.

"Alright, campers, listen up!" Shouted Wes. "Today's your next challenge, and unlike last time, it'll be over within the day."

"Thank goodness…" Icelyn sighed in relief. "The woods was very much stressful for everyone…"

"So, what's the challenge today Wes?" Bronco raised a brow.

"Today's challenge is a two-part gig." Said Wes. "I'll explain the second part later, so let's just head on to the first half of the challenge. Follow me, angsty teens!"

The twenty-five campers followed Wes on a dirt trail leading out from the campsite into the woods.

"What's down this trail, Wes?" Deon asked.

"Oh, just a lagoon. Nothing special." Shrugged.

"A lagoon!?" Paisley yelled out, excited. "Is it shit-free enough for us to swim in it!?"

"Yep!" Smiled Wes. "It's even part of the challenge!"

"Sounds better than the beach then!" Paisley chortled.

A moment later, the group arrived at a small lagoon surrounded by trees, a thin layer of moss bordered around the water. A small wooden but mossy dock was set in the water, leading about a quarter of the way in.

"Eww. What's with all the moss?" Deon gagged.

"It's a natural body of water in the middle of the forest, dude, what do you expect?" Wes raised a brow. "Anyway, the first part of your challenge takes place right in the lagoon!"

"So? The hell's the challenge?" Kimber crossed her arms, frowning impatiently.

"This challenge will be about gathering up Magikarp in the lagoon." Said Wes. "You'll all dive down into the lagoon, grab up some of those boney fish, and bring them back up. The team who can gather up the most will get an advantage in the second part of the challenge."

"Woah! All without a catch too!" Wheat wagged his tail.

" _Not_ quite, Wheat…" Smirked Wes. "To mess with you guys during the challenge, I've had one of my interns lurk in the water to disrupt and hurt you as you swim around."

"W-What Pokemon is it?" Gulped Dusty.

"Beats me." Shrugs Wes, smirking. "Now, first team to go will be the Diehard Wailords! So step up onto the dock as the Sharpedos sit by and see if you mess things up again."

A few of them grumbled to themselves in irritation as they went to the dock. The Gallant Sharpedos stood by on the dirt, sitting down to spectate.

"Alright, the rules for this is simple enough." Said Wes. "Each member can only go dive in _once_ , and the moment they resurface they're stuck with however many Magikarp is in their possession. Once you get up on dry land, the amount you have is added your total, then you'll go ahead and release the Magikarp back in."

"Oh thank goodness…" Thurman wiped the sweat off his forehead. "I was afraid we'd be forced to keep them out from the water."

"Dude. Shut up and watch." Scowled Kimber.

"So, with all the instructions out of the way, go knock yourselves out!" Instructed Wes.

Fynn leaned over the edge, trying to look down through the darkish blue water.

"It's really hard to see…" He pointed out.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever pipsqueak." Said Sergio, pushing him away with his foot. "Wes needs to stop making these challenges super easy!"

Sergio flipped into the water, splashing Fynn. The Dedenne shook the water off and puffed his cheeks out frowning.

"Meanie…" He pouted.

"Fucking jerk…" Keone scoffed under his breath.

Sergio swam all the way to the bottom, holding his breath and searching around for any Magikarp. He could barely make out his surroundings in the water; only a few faint shadows moving around him. He huffed cockily, and swiftly swiped up a Magikarp. Clutching onto that one, he then caught another one between his legs. He smirked and quickly dashed up, emerging from the water catching his breath with ease.

" _Boomtown_ , _baby_!" He shouted, holding the two in his hands. Keeping them in his hands, he swam to the shore and was able to start walking through the mossy water.

"Way too easy, Wes!" He shouted cockily back at the host.

However, since he held them up high in the air, the two Magikarp started panicking and flailed around. Sergio started to topple and could barely keep his grip on them.

"Hey! Quit squirming, shit-for-brains!" He shouted at them.

One Magikarp slapped him in the face, tipping him over and making him land back in the water. The two Magikarp loosened themselves and swam back into the lagoon.

"What the hell!?" He shouted them, starting to run after them.

"Sorry, Sergio, but like I said: you can't go back in once you've come out." Wes told him.

"Hah! Hahaha!" Laughed Nora. "You got your shit slapped by a _Magikarp_! HAHAHA!"

Sergio stomped the water, fuming angrily as he walked out.

"Are you kidding me…" Joseph sighed to himself.

Alexandria stood up to the ledge. "Allow me to search through the water for more populated spots.

The Prinplup dove in the water, swiftly making her way around the lagoon floor. After a moment of searching around, passing areas with barely any Magikarp, she found a spot with over a dozen Magikarp swimming around. She smirked and propelled herself towards them, biting onto one and bundling three between her fins. She calmly swam back up and resurfaced, easily walking through the mossy borders and stepping back onto land.

"Alexandria scores four Magikarp for the Wailords!" Announces Wes.

Alexandria shrugged and tossed the three back, spitting out the one in her mouth as well.

"The Magikarps stay more in the left area of the lagoon. Swim down there for better collecting." Alexandria stated to her team, picking off the moss from her.

"Got it!" Fynn waved before diving off into the water.

He puffed his cheeks out as much as he could, holding his breath tightly. He dove a decent amount down, and could see a Magikarp's shadow swimming near him. He excitedly flipped himself under water. Fynn charged up his cheek pouches, then quickly swam up to the Magikarp and used Nuzzle to zap it and instantly paralyze it. However, his face started to turning blue, starting to lose his breath. He grabbed onto his Magikarp and swam as fast he could, pushing up his catch. He barely made it out, inhaling a deep breath of air returning his color back to normal.

"I… got… one…!" He panted, using his Magikarp as a floatation device.

"Nice work, Fynn!" Icelyn praised him.

Fynn paddled his little feet, managing to make it to shore.

"Bye bye, Magikarp!" Fynn waved, pushing his Magikarp back out. The Fish Pokemon, completely paralyzed, could only glare back at him before sinking back down.

"Ooh! This gives me an idea!" Paisley shot up with an idea.

She pumped her arms, coursing electricity throughout her body by using Charge. She then shot a Thundershock at the water, but instead of it shocking the whole lagoon, her move got directed towards one point in the water. The electricity all zapped one area before completely disappearing.

"Huh!?" She said, utterly surprised. "My Thundershock…! What kinda whack ass thing just happened!?"

" _That_ was the intern." Wes claimed. "And it looks like they're ready to _wreck it_ down there!"

"Seriously? Who in the world is down there?" Bronco glared over at Wes.

"The answer to that can be figured out once somebody comes into contact with them." Wes smiled cockily. "So, go ahead and jump in if you wanna find out so badly.

"Shit…" Bronco swore under his breath.

"Guess electrocuting them isn't an option…" Yanna observed the water.

"Here, let me go next!" Offered Deon. He did a quick cannonball into the water, and began swimming further down. He glanced around, barely seeing anything around him. A shadow then started approaching him. He smiled, thinking he could grab the one, and reached out for it as he swam towards it. However, upon getting closer, the Pokemon fully revealed itself: an Eelektross with a mechanical device looped around its waist, glared towards him as it fast approached.

Deon screamed, albeit muffled by the water, as he started swimming the opposite way. However, the Eelektross snatched him by the ankle and coursed a Thunderbolt throughout his body, making him spaz out violently. The EleFish Pokemon then tightened its grip on his leg and swung him up, launching back up to the surface. Deon, wide-eyed and frizzled up, stared at the sky as he floated on the surface.

"Woah! Are you alright!?" Asked Paisley in concern. "Like, what was the Pokemon!?"

"It's an Eelektross… nothing special…" Deon wheezed out before barely paddling backwards to shore.

"An Eelektross?" Yanna questioned. "They can't have the Lightning Rod ability though."

"True," spoke Wes, "but we gave them a special shock collar that _acts_ as a lightning rod. So all electric attacks are nullified.

"Aw, man!" Paisley pouted.

"This _shocks_!" Leo frowned, snapping his fingers.

Icelyn brightened up. "If it's an electric type down there, then some of our types can counter or lessen the damage!"

"We got me being a ground-type, you're a grass-type, and Paisley over there's an electric-type." Bronco noticed. "We got three ace-in-the-holes here!"

Icelyn nodded. "Yes! So let's take use of the advantage!"

Icelyn dove into the water and went straight down to the lagoon floor. She swam towards the direction Alexandria advised them to go, finding a decent amount of Magikarp swimming around. Since she was at the bottom, she used Grass Knot to extend her own grass through the dirt then snare onto a few Magikarp. It wasn't enough to do significant damage to them, but the Magikarp were practically chained up by her.

Icelyn nodded determinedly and swam to each one, just straight up punching them to briefly daze them before tucking them under her arm. She quickly dashed back up, holding two under each of her leaf arms.

"Icelyn made great success down there!" Icelyn shouted in joy.

"Way to go, girl!" Bronco congratulated.

Icelyn made her way up to dry land then let each of the Magikarps back into the water, but not before giving them a gentle pat and a thanks from the Lilligant. All the Magikarp blushed and smiled delightfully as they swam back.

"Why didn't she get jacked up by the Eelektross, huh?" Nora scoffed at Wes.

"Hey. The water's dark." Shrugged the host. "They got the same field of vision you guys got."

"Tch. Whatever." She scoffed back. "Who's going next?"

"Belly flop!" Leo grinned, running off the dock.

He landed flat on his stomach then sunk down, but he still kept his smiled as he slowly swam down. However, he immediately bumped heads with the Eelektross. His eyes shot wide open in fear as the Eelektross grabbed him by his arms. It furiously shocked with a Thunderbolt, violently vibrating his whole body. Once he was electrocuted enough, it slapped Leo hard and rocketed him back up. He screamed in terror, landing back down _through_ the dock and plopping right into the shallow water.

"Hey. You alright?" Joseph raised a brow, looking down at him.

Leo rolled over groaning. "This _shocks_ … really, really _shocks_ …"

"Hey, Wes." Joseph turned to the host. "Are we allowed to knock the Eelektross out ourselves?"

"If you wanna waste your time and energy, then go for it." Smiled Wes.

"Of course…" The Sawk rolled his eyes. "Let's see if I can pull it off then."

Joseph dove into the water, first swimming down to look for the Magikarp. Just seeing two, he decided to just take it and swam towards them. However, he heard something dashing through the water right behind him. He glanced back, seeing the Eelektross radiating a purple glow around its claws for a Dragon Claw.

Joseph tightened his fist, then swiftly turned around and threw a Counter at the Eelektross. However, the eel's speed was fast and its Dragon Claw was about to nail him straight in the head. Joseph moved fast enough to arch his neck away to avoid it, landing the counter directly to its mouth.

He smirked as the Eelektross immediately flipped away. However, the EleFish Pokemon used its tail to quickly zap him in his leg. It swam away leaving Joseph to cling onto his leg wincing. Calling it a draw himself, he began to swim to the two Magikarp. He quickly gripped onto them, then resurfaced calmly.

"I've managed to get just two." Joseph said when he resurfaced. "I'd suggest just defending yourself against the Eelektross. A full on fight could cost you."

"How so?" Paisley tilted her head in confusion.

"...I'm pretty confident that I'm partially paralyzed now." Joseph said, barely moving his stiff arm. Fortunately his grip was stuck onto the Magikarp, so he used his good arm to swim back. Once on land, he tossed the free one back in then punched the stuck one off his stuck hand.

"Could I perhaps get first aid?" He asked Wes.

"Of course." Wes smirked, tossing over a Paralyze Heal. Joseph missed it since he threw it by his stiff arm.

"...thanks." He said before picking up from the water.

 **0000000**

" **He's quite the jackass…" Joseph clenched his fist annoyed.**

 **0000000**

Next up, Bronco jumped into the water. Using his weight to let him sink down, he glanced around for any Magikarp. He saw a few swimming near him, and decided to just rush for them. He swam over, reaching out for any to grab. A few got away, only able to grab onto one. He wanted to sigh and decided to resurface.

Suddenly, the Eelektross grabbed him by his foot. He looked back startled, seeing it glare at him. However, knowing it was electric type, he snapped his jaws at it, barely missing it. Unexpectedly, to him, the Eelektross readied a Dragon Claw and slashed at his neck. However, since Bronco got his head near it, it ended up hitting him straight in the side of his neck. He gasped out in pain, then realized he let out his breath. He released his Magikarp and quickly hurried up to the surface as the Eelektross swam away.

Resurfacing, Bronco took in a deep breath. He coughed out lagoon water, pounding his chest to get the water out his lungs.

"Bronco! Are you alright!?" Icelyn yelled from the shore, sitting with the rest of her finished teammates.

"I-I'm good! Just got roughed up a bit!" He shouted back. He looked up at his teammates still on the dock. "Sorry guys, but I lost my Magikarp. But good luck to the bunch of y'all!"

He made his way back to the ground, as the last four Wailords observed the water.

"Any takers…?" Nora boredly raised a brow at the others.

"Ooh! I can do it!" Paisley jumped. "It'll be easier than trying to polish your crusty plastic eyes!"

Paisley jumped into the water, leaving Nora absolutely baffled. Keone just snickered to himself as Yanna looked away hiding her smirk. Nora huffed and crossed her arms.

 **0000000**

" **Everyone here's my enemy, since it's a competition and all." Nora frowned, leaning against the wall. "But that kinda shit won't fly by me! Only I can talk shit and not get hit!"**

 **0000000**

Paisley searched around the lagoon floor, searching for any Magikarp. However, thinking for a moment, she decided to try something. She let out her Thundershock, which of course got directed away somewhere by the Eelektross. She nodded and pumped her arms before swimming away. From the surface, only a jagged line of light was visible from the water.

"What was she trying to accomplish?" Joseph asked. "It's been established that electricity won't work."

"If you think about it for a second, seeing her Thundershock get directed further away, she's playing it smart." Smirked Alexandria. "She pinpointed the Eelektross's position and should know by now it's safe to search around where she is."

"Wow. The girl's got some spark in her after all." Bronco watched the water impressed. "Guess she's a player after all."

"My apologies then…" Joseph admitted.

Bronco playfully hit his shoulder. "It's all right, man. No need for sorries."

Joseph smiled. "Yeah… Sorry…"

Bronco snickered at him apologizing again.

 **0000000**

" **Hasn't the hillbilly heard about personal space? Pokemon like him are just a pain…" Huffed Joseph, patting off his shoulder.**

 **0000000**

Paisley resurfaced from the water, clinging onto a Magikarp. She shook her wet fur out and paddled back to land.

"Fish filet right here has nothing on me! Hee hee!" She laughed before chucking the Magikarp back to the water.

"Nice one, Paisley!" Smiled Deon.

Paisley hurried up to him and the two gleefully exchanged high fives. Leo cheerfully followed her up with another high five.

Next, Yanna calmly jumped into the water and began her search. Easily using her psychic abilities, she pinpointed where the Eelektross was and maneuvered her way from it. Sensing some of the Magikarp as well, Yanna shrugged and dove further down, swooping one up in her arms. She resurfaced up barely having to regain her breath and paddled on her Magikarp back to shore.

Once she stepped on dry land, she tossed her Magikarp back in and sat down without a word.

"Good job Yanna!" Fynn congratulated.

"Thanks." She simply replied, crossing her legs to sit more comfortably.

"You going next, ya mutt?" Nora snickered at Keone.

"Assholes first." Keone motioned her to the water, not caring much about her.

"That means you gotta go first then." Nora confidently retorted.

"Alright." Shrugged Keone. "But the last one going always gets the blame… then the boot…"

Nora pushed by him, smirking. "Then I'll get your ass outta here!" She dove into the water, leaving Keone crossing his arms and smirking.

Nora swam further down, smirking herself. However, she paused then smacked her head. She groaned and tossed her arms up, feeling defeated. However, doing so caused her to gush water into her mouth. She gagged and clutched her neck, then hurriedly looked around. She went for a Magikarp and grabbed it, ready to go back to shore.

The Eelektross, however, intervened. It swam up to her and nailed her with a Dragon Claw, sending her up while making her Magikarp slip away from her. Nora shouted and spun out of the water, getting sent high in the air.

"Holy moly!" Exclaimed Fynn, looking up with the rest of the team.

"HAH! You got fucked, brah!" Shouted Sergio. However, Nora came spinning back down and ended striking him directly in the head. Sergio fell on his back completely dazed as Nora roughly tumbled onto the dirt. "Shit…" He groaned.

"Ow, dammit…!" Nora yelled, rubbing her head. "Piece of crap Pokemon…"

As the last one up, Keone stretched out and cracked his paws before jumping right in. The Lycanroc searched around low the lagoon floor, already spotting Magikarp all around him. Despite the opportunity to catch them, Keone just swam glancing around cautiously.

Out of the blue, the Eelektross spiraled straight to him. Right as it charged up its Thunderbolt to flank him, Keone swiftly turned around, grabbing hold of a big rock from the lagoon floor, and used Rock Throw against the Eelektross. Caught off guard by it, the Eelektross dashed away from it flinching. Using the chance, Keone made his paw glow for a Brick Break and kicked off the dirt to dash through water. With the Eelektross shaking itself off, it turned but was already eye to eye with him. Keone swung his toughened fist against the side of its head, almost sending it flying off before he caught onto its tail.

Starting to run out of breath, Keone hurried and used the knocked out Eelektross to tangle up whatever Magikarp he could get. Bundling a few, he dashed up to resurface. The Eelektross, however, barely slipping back into consciousness, glared at him and shocked him with the Magikarp using a Thunderbolt. Despite this, Keone gritted his teeth as he kept dashing towards the shore. From the ground, everyone else could only see a spark of light erupting.

"Keone!" Fynn called out.

"He can make it!" Stated Bronco, watching with his fist clenched.

Once the Thunderbolt disappeared, there was no movement in the water. Everyone stood still waiting for anything to happen. Then, Keone came up wheezing for air as he brought up the out cold Eelektross tied around only two Magikarp.

"Hooray!" Cheered Fynn.

"Woah! You knocked it out!?" Asked Deon.

Keone spat out the bit of water in his mouth and weakly swam back to shore. Once he could barely step back up to the ground, he growled and chucked the Eelektross with the Magikarp back into the water.

"Gimme a break…" He groaned before falling on his back.

"W-Woah! Are you alright!?" Deon asked worriedly.

"Not even slightly…" He said, tiredly staring up.

"Well, seems like the Diehard Wailords are done with their set." Approached Wes. "So, with the last two, you've got a total of just fifteen Magikarp!"

"Of _course_!" Sergio angrily threw his hands up.

"Alright, Gallant Sharpedos. You guys are up!" Wes motioned them to the dock.

" _Finally_!" Kimber groaned.

"All right! Let's do this!" Torvald gleamed before running to the dock, the rest of the team trailing behind.

Icelyn hurried over to Keone, kneeling down next to him. She clasped her leaf hands together and looked over him worryingly.

"Keone, are you alright? How bad is the paralysis?" She asked in concern.

Keone grunted and turned his head away from the team, sweating as he tried to hide his flushed face.

Bronco sighed. "Now ain't a good time to be stubborn, brother…"

"It's okay! Icelyn will restore him to regular health!" Assured the Lilligant.

Icelyn shut her eyes and began humming away. Suddenly, a naturally sweet aroma wafted around them. Everyone sniffed, immediately taking notice of the fragrance.

"Aromatherapy…?" Keone murmured.

Once Icelyn opened her eyes, the scent started to die down but lingered around.

"Mm! It's smells super sweet!" Fynn rubbed his cheeks in delight.

Keone, free from the paralysis, kicked himself back up. Icelyn smiled and backed away as he shook the dirt off himself.

"Feeling better?" She smiled at him.

"Never better…" Keone rolled his eyes and walked away.

"Tch. Not even a nice thanks for the gal?" Bronco raised a brow at Keone walking away.

"It's fine! Really! Icelyn doesn't care for a thank you after helping out." She assured the Krokorok.

Bronco smirked, glancing at her. "Yeah. It's good to be modest these days…"

On the dock, Kimber cracked her neck ready to dive in. She glared into the water in efforts to scope out any Magikarp or the rowdy Eelektross.

"All right Sharpedos… Begin!" Wes shouted.

"I'll beat fifteen Magikarps easily." Kimber cockily predicted.

Kimber dove into the water and delve to the lagoon floor. For a moment, she searched around seeing nothing around her. Then, she came across a whole school of Magikarp. She grinned and bolted towards them, slashing away and causing a rumble. After knocking most of them out, she grabbed as many as she could and shot up to resurface.

Suddenly, the Eelektross, fuming fully enraged, critically headbutted her straight in the back. She yelled out in pain, losing a few Magikarp that sunk back down. She put her paw against her mouth having lost her breath and hurriedly swam back up. She gasped for air out of the water, miraculously still holding onto some Magikarp.

"Ow, freakin… Asshole!" She shouted back at the water. She stepped up to the shore and dumped her Magikarp on the ground, all barely moving.

"Let's see… that's six Magikarp! So much for sweeping them in one turn! Haha!" Chortled Wes.

"HA! Dipshit!" Sergio yelled out.

Kimber angrily gritted her teeth. "Shut your mouth, twig boy!"

Since she was right by the other team, Icelyn went up to her and softly patted her back.

"It's alright. Don't let him get you down like that." She assured the bear.

"I'll calm down once I beat his head in…" Kimber muttered before walking away.

Nora snickered. "His head's hella fat, so it'll just pop the moment you hit it!"

"Shut the hell up!" The Machoke snapped at her.

 **0000000**

" **These stupid assholes! Why the hell ain't I getting the respect I deserve!? I was the ace for my wrestling, football, and even the boring ass tennis team!" Fumed Sergio. He groaned and rubbed his neck.**

" **And my head's not fat! My neck's just swole as hell…"**

 **0000000**

" **Dammit!" Kimber shouted. "The other team should take me as a threat, not a joke! Ugh…!"**

 **0000000**

"I shall bring back many Magikarp as well!" Said Sascha before jumping into the water.

Paddling down, she already spotted a Magikarp. She nodded to herself before diving further down. However, the Eelektross swam aside from her readying a Dragon Claw. Wide-eyed, she panicked and used a ferocious Roar. The Eelektross flailed around as it was sent far back. Sascha realized she used up her breath, visibly panicking. She hurried over to the Magikarp, chomped onto it, and rushed to get back up.

She emerged out of the water and quickly swam back to the ground. She spat out her Magikarp and plopped down tiredly as it flopped away.

"So much for that…" Kimber rolled her eyes.

"My… apologies…" She panted tiredly.

Next up, Celeste stood to the edge and gently sniffed the air. Gulping, she fanned herself with her sleeves feeling a bit anxious.

"Okay… This shouldn't take more than a minute…" She told herself before diving in.

Glancing around nervously, she delve down and hoped that the Eelektross wouldn't find her. She found a few Magikarp swimming around her spot and hurriedly swam around gathering as many as she could quickly get. Celeste gathered up just a few and didn't hesitate to press her feet against the dirt floor, using Bounce to launch herself back up. She shot out from the water and rolled onto the ground, still holding onto her Magikarp.

"Oh thank goodness…" She dropped the Magikarp to wipe the water and sweat off her forehead.

"...you alright?" Kimber raised a brow.

"Yes. Delving deep into water isn't quite a relaxing time when the scent of such a murderous intent lingers from the water…" Celeste rubbed her arm, still a bit nervous.

 **0000000**

" **I've trained myself in both physical and mental combat… if, um, that last part makes any sense to you. But I despise in ever harming another being! Peace is more fulfilling than violence…" Celeste sheepishly admitted.**

 **0000000**

"Let's see…" Wes said, watching the Magikarp flail back into the lagoon. "Just three Magikarp!"

"Okay! I'll go next!" Said Thurman.

He took a deep breath and dove straight into the lagoon. He calmly searched around, honing his aura to sense for the Magikarp. Detecting just about every Magikarp, he smiled as he started swimming around. He only grabbed onto one, which got irritated and try to wiggle itself free, and started swimming back up.

Of course, the Eelektross came back to interfere. Not paying any notice to it, Thurman swam calmly back up as the Eelektross charged up electricity. It blindsided him and used a full Thunderbolt, shocking him and the Magikarp. Both he and his catch spazzed out violently from the electrocution. The Eelektross then headbutted him in the chin, sending him up while losing his Magikarp.

Thurman resurfaced up, dazed as he floated to the mossy shore. Celeste rushed over to help by dragging him out. Kimber sighed and rolled her eyes. Sascha just idled by in concern.

"These challenges are so painful…" The Lucario groaned as he was dragged.

"You know," Quinn spoke to her team, "we're only about six short from winning this. Can anyone use a move that'll quickly grab them up?" She asked her teammates.

"If fire worked under water, I definitely could!" Gleamed Torvald jokingly.

"Hugo's afraid his electricity wouldn't work well either…" Hugo sheepishly tapped his finger together.

"I could, like, go undercover with the Magikarp and, like, convince them to get out of the water…" Muriel amusingly suggested. "I'm a socializer, you know~"

"No, Muriel…" Quinn sighed. "Just any move that could get them at once."

"Oh." Bonnie spoke up nonchalantly, brushing aside her fur collar's curl away from her mouth. "I could use Psychic."

"Good." Quinn nodded. "Then go ahead and fish up the win."

Bonnie shrugged and just walked towards the edge. She blankly looked down at the water before stepping off, sinking straight down. She nonchalantly eyed around as she sank and shrugged. Her eyes glowed yellow as she held her paws out.

Suddenly, dozens of Magikarp gravitated towards her. Quickly she had a swarm of Magikarp around her. She then started swimming back up, easily keeping the Magikarp around her. However, the Eelektross came dashing towards her ready to strike with a Thunderbolt. Bonnie blankly looked at it while motioning an arm. About half of the Magikarp were swiftly propelled towards it. The Magikarp pummeled the Eelektross who tried to block them, but was completely pushed down further into the water.

Bonnie rose up from the water, levitating her Magikarp onto the ground. Once she dumped her massive pile onto the ground, her eyes returned to normal as she stepped back onto land. Everyone just looked at her completely stunned.

"Jeez…" Said Deon, completely baffled.

Bonnie shook her fur out before taking a seat with her team without even giving off a single word or emotion.

"And with _that_ ," Wes smiled, absolutely surprised, "the Gallant Sharpedos earn the advantage!"

"Way to go, Bonnie!" Torvald called out excitedly, getting a nonchalant shrug from the Meowstic.

"What in the shitting hell…" Quinn uttered, completely baffled.

"Alright folks, let's get going to the beach!" Announced Wes.

 **0000000**

" **She should have been using that kind of strength since the beginning…" Growled Quinn.**

 **0000000**

* * *

On the beach, the campers were confused by seeing two wooden narrow boats resting on the shore.

"Alright campers, here's your next challenge." Said Wes.

"Tell me it ain't more fishing…" Bronco crossed his arms.

"Nope!" Wes grinned. "Instead, we're having a full on water war!"

"Ooh! Like with super soakers and water balloons!" Torvald jumped up and down excitedly.

Wes tapped his chin curiously. "Huh. Yeah, actually. From these boats, you will be battling it out on the water trying to knock each other off. First team to get every one of their players eliminated faces elimination."

"But… that would be such a drastic waste of water, right?" Asked Thurman in concern.

"Hey, you're _on_ the water, so most of it's gonna go back in the lake." Wes shrugged it off.

"But we'll be disrupting the ecosystem here!" He protested.

"H… How?" Quinn raised a brow at him.

"Do you know who the world belongs to? The world, of course!" He preached. "Water is for its inhabitants, as is the ground and the sky. We shouldn't use another's home for fun and games!"

" _Dude_." Wes glared. "You're literally just hitting each with water _on_ the water. What's the harm in that?"

"The peace of the water should be maintained, as peace is a universal being. And messing with their property is an act of irrational superiority."

"This is the dumbest argument…" Kimber groaned.

"Look. Whether you like it or not, it's the challenge. So just move along with the program, hippie boy." Wes scolded him.

Thurman sighed and scratched his head. "Of course the higher-up wants to profit off the lesser folks…"

Wes scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Wes! Wes! How do we knock someone off their boat?" Asked Fynn, already looking passed the exchange.

"Good enough of a segway!" Wes returned to his bravado. "For the losers, you guys will get these suckers!" Wes pointed to the two homemade slingshot cannons set up on the right boat. "Using these slingshots, you guys have to fill up provided water balloons and strike your opponents til' they fall off their boats."

"That weak shit isn't gonna work!" Sergio protested.

"True, but for sucking big time, the losers will just have to luck it out. Too bad, not at all sad." Wes mocked them. "As for the winning team, they will get much better weaponry to knock you off."

Wes snapped his fingers, bringing in Lloyd holding up two devices. They were water tanks connected with a hose-like device with straps to put on like a backpack.

"Woah! Those look super cool!" Wheat wagged his tail.

"Yep! With these babies, you can shoot down your opponents with bursts of water that have the force of a Hydro Pump." Added Wes.

"That's a load of Rapidash crap!" Nora shouted.

"Hey, it's like I said: too bad, not sad." Wes smirked. "One last thing to add! If you're knocked into the water, you don't have to stop there. Feel free to try to drag in opponents, but you _cannot_ climb aboard their boat."

Lloyd tossed Torvald and Celeste the two soaker devices as Wes tossed Leo and Deon packaged water balloons.

"Will these, um, _not_ burst from the slingshots alone…" Deon eyed the bag worryingly.

"Of course! _And_ they're made to get big as a watermelon! See, it's not all unfairness on this show. Haha!" Wes chortled. "Now load up and prepare for an all-out water war!"

The teams split and boarded onto their respective boats, Kimber and Bronco staying on the sand to push them out.

"Good luck to you guys down there!" Bronco said over to her, pushing his team's boat out.

"Go eat shit!" Kimber yelled back, kicking the boat further into the water.

"Wow. Friendly competition…" He rolled his eyes, getting the boat out into the water.

With their boats out into the water, the two jumped in as the boats drifted out. Once they were out, the two teams stood by the edges facing their opponents. Torvald giggled as he readied his water soaker as Celeste just eyed her machine worryingly. On the slingshot cannons, a smug Sergio and a calm Joseph were on standby ready to start firing away.

"W-We sure we can do this?" Asked Dusty.

"We've won the last two challenges, right?" Quinn smirked.

"Um… If Hugo may ask, what is the team's plan for this?" Asked Hugo unsurely.

"With these bad boys, hitting and dodging can get us the win…" Suggest Muriel, feeling up the device on Celeste's back. Despite not actually touching her, Celeste shuddered in discomfort.

" _Kinda_ right…" Quinn agreed, creeped out by the Gourgeist. "Let's see… Torvald and Celeste will shoot them up; the rest of us can easily handle taking on a water balloons."

"Then let's do this!" Wheat nodded determinedly.

"I'm sorry, but I will be standing my ground and not take any part of this wasteful challenge." Said Thurman, sitting down cross-legged.

"Seriously?" Quinn raised a brow.

"I will take no part in taking the home of magnificent creatures for granted." He persisted.

"It's a _competition_. Don't you want to win at all?" Quinn asked, starting to lose patience.

"Of course. But I will still stand by what's right. There's nothing that can change that." He crossed his arms defiantly. "And I wish that you could all do the same."

"Yep. Not happening. _At all_." Glared Kimber.

Quinn sighed. "Guess we're going to be one member short today then…"

Rosie looked up to Grey. "T-This is kinda confusing… It's o-only water, r-right…?"

The Houndoom looked at the persistent Lucario in concern, but just sheepishly shrugged in response.

On the Wailords' boat, Yanna inspected one their slingshots.

"Yep. These are gonna suck." She told her team.

"So how do we got about this? Organize ourselves or roam free and hope for the best?" Asked Joseph.

"I reckon we have two gunners and the rest of us filling up the balloons. Simple but effective." Offered Bronco.

"How about adding a bit more to that." Alexandria suggested. "With the other team's rather powerful water pumps, Icelyn, Paisley and I could block any attacks against us. We're more resistant to water after all."

"Icelyn can agree to that!" Smiled Icelyn.

"Same here then!" Paisley smirked confidently.

"What about me? I'm electric, so I can stop some water too!" Fynn spoke up.

"'Cause you're small as shit. _Literally_! You'd get sent flying regardless of type!" She teased.

"...she's _not_ wrong." Joseph hesitantly agreed. "For this challenge, you should use your nimbleness to help with the balloons. You'd be a greater asset with that task."

"Will do then!" Fynn saluted.

Wes pulled out his megaphone. "YOU JERKS READY NOW!?"

"How do we fill these!?" Deon called out.

"With these balloons, just put 'em in the water and they'll start filling up!" Wes shouted back.

"Did he get cheap balloons or rather advanced ones?" Alexandria questioned.

"All right suckers! Let the water war… begin!" Wes shouted.

"Let's rock their shit!" Sergio smirked cockily, readying himself on a slingshot. "Toss me one!"

"Shoot! We just started filling them! Sorry!" Deon nervously responded, him and Leo starting to put the balloons in the water.

"Are you serious!?" Sergio shouted back. "GLAGHH-!"

Sergio was suddenly hit with a burst of water, getting roughly tumbled away. Deon paused from filling the balloons and looked back curious of the noise.

"What happen- OOF!" He yelped. Sergio collided with him, knocking the two overboard.

Sergio quickly resurfaced, beating his chest to hack water out his throat.

"UGH! WHO IN THE HELL DID THAT!?" Sergio barked out.

Everyone in the Gallant Sharpedos all turned to Torvald, who giggled excitedly.

"Wow! This thing's a load of fun!" He laughed.

Deon resurfaced desperately gasping for air.

"Ugh…" He groaned.

"I'll show these assholes!" Sergio fumed, swimming off for the other side.

"R-Right behind you!" Deon called after, following along.

Celeste aimed her hose, then shot out her burst at the cost of recoiling back. The burst of water shot straight for an unsuspecting Leo, who was rushing along to get water balloons filled, but Icelyn jumped up into the air and knocked the water aside.

"Nice one!" Bronco pumped his arms.

"This is quite fun!" Icelyn smiled. She started to fan her leaf hand out. "But a bit painful too…"

Stumbling back from the recoil, Celeste tripped against Dusty. This made the Sandslash stumble back, stuttering out as he fumbled towards the edge.

"WOAH!" He yelped, about to fall over. However, Celeste caught him just in time, holding him up as he pressed his feet against the side of the boat.

"Are you alright?" Celeste asked in concern.

"U-Uh, in a way, I guess so…" Dusty glanced around, checking whether he was still in.

Dusty sighed in relief, but then yelped again when Sergio emerged from the water and tightened his arm around his neck.

"Choke hold, twerp!" Smirked Sergio before dragging Dusty into the water.

"Dusty!" Celeste called after him.

Sergio and Dusty rose back up, the Machoke smirking cockily as the Sandslash gagged out water. Celeste frowned and aimed her hose at Sergio, making him lose his cocky attitude.

"Ah shit…" He gulped.

Celeste blasted him with water, forcing him back under water.

"Are you alright Dusty!?" Celeste asked concernedly.

"AHHH! I DON'T WANT TO DROWN!" He cried out, pathetically doggy paddling back to the shore. Celeste just sighed and looked back at her tank. She gasped seeing her tank out of water.

"Torvald! These things can only shoot up twice with a full tank!" She informed him.

"Got it!" Torvald responded with a thumbs up before blasting his for a second time.

The burst of water was heading straight for Joseph, who was ready with one of the cannons. In the nick of time, Alexandria leaped in front of him and slashed the water with a Metal Claw, managing to nullify the hit.

"You have my thanks." Joseph smiled.

"And you have my welcome." Alexandria smirked and rolled her eyes.

"Yo! Heads up!" Nora shouted. She threw a plump water balloon over to Joseph, but not giving him the time to react, the balloon popped against his face splashing him with water. Alexandria slightly chuckled behind her fin.

"Thank you Nora…" Said Joseph, wiping water off himself.

"No problem!" Nora grinned.

"We got a lot of balloons ready!" Leo announced, him and Bronco holding a bunch of large water balloons.

"Great. Hand me one." Said Joseph, holding out his hand.

Leo quickly tossed a balloon into his hand. Joseph pulled the sling back and placed the balloon in. He aimed it, scoping out the other team.

"Let's see if this can even take out a bite-size weakling…" Joseph murmured to himself.

He aimed his cannon at Rosie, who was shivering in fear in the middle of the boat. Joseph smirked and released his grip on the sling, sending the balloon flying towards her.

Seeing it coming, Grey went wide-eyed and jumped over to her. He covered her body, startling the Budew.

"G-Grey?" She whimpered.

The large balloon burst against the Houndoom's side, making him wince in pain. He stumbled away, hurt from the hit of water, before another balloon burst against his face. Grey shook his head out in pain, accidently backing away to the ledge. His back paws went over the ledge, tripping him. He tried to claw onto the boat but no avail.

"Shit!" Quinn noticed him.

She dove over to try and grab onto his paw, but Grey slid off faster and fell into the water.

"Dammit…!" She muttered under her breath.

"G-Grey!?" Rosie called out.

Grey resurfaced from the water, shivering as he started paddling to the shore.

"Direct hit!" Bronco smirked.

"Alright!" Icelyn nodded, having armed the cannon. "Hand me another! Let's keep going!"

"Right!" Bronco agreed.

Quinn frowned at them before rushing over to Celeste, who was submerging her tank to fill it up.

"Celeste, aim for the ones in control of those slingshots!" She ordered.

"What?" Celeste raised a brow, bringing the now full tank back up. "But why? Water balloons shouldn't really do much to the majority of us…"

"Easy: anyone sitting around is an easier target and we gotta keep reducing the ones strong enough to use the slingshots." Quinn explained.

Celeste nodded in understandment as Quinn checked out her team. Only Sascha and Kimber were ready to dodge or block at any second. The rest just idled around, watching on, except Thurman who sat cross-legged meditating.

"Hmph. Not a very high paced challenge…" Quinn commented.

Torvald, having filled up his tank again, aimed and shot a burst of water. The shot headed towards Yanna, who just blankly stared it, as Paisley jumped in and took the hit. She fell onto Yanna, causing the two brief pain.

"Yeowch…" Paisley rubbed her back in pain. "Sorry about that! Tee hee!"

"Eh. It worked, so no trouble." Yanna shrugged.

Torvald fired a second shot, aiming at Leo who was holding the balloons for Joseph.

"Duck!" Joseph cautioned.

" _Psyduck_ or _Golduck_?" Leo grinned.

Not taking the warning seriously, Leo ended up getting directly hit. The balloons popped on impact as he was sent flying back shouting. Alexandria, who was helping Fynn tie the balloons, got struck by Leo. Due to his heavy weight, she yelped on impact feeling the force of a cannonball. Leo still shouted as the two plunged into the water.

"Dammit all…" Joseph muttered, shooting off a balloon.

His shot ended up getting deflected by Muriel, who used her hair to slap the balloon against the boat.

"Haha. Nice~" Muriel complemented herself, using her hair to clap together as if giving herself a high five.

Icelyn fired another shot, headed straight for Torvald. Kimber smirked confidently.

"Tch. I got this." She boasted.

She ran up to him, about to slash at the balloon. However, she slid right onto the water puddle Muriel caused from deflecting the shot.

"What the-!?" Kimber yelled, skidding on the puddle. She ended up flipping backwards into the water. She emerged quickly and slashed at the water angrily. "The hell!?"

Seeing her slip, Joseph was briefly puzzled before smirking with an idea.

"Icelyn!" He called for her attention. "If we soak up their boat's floor, we can make it too slippery for them to move on!"

"Sounds splendid!" Icelyn nodded.

She grabbed another balloon from Bronco and launched it. The balloon headed straight for Hugo. The Geodude crossed his arms bracing for impact, however, the water stopped short in front of him being held with a pink aura.

"Huh?" He looked at it confused.

Bonnie, eyes glowing, held the water up and threw it back into the water. Her eyes returned to normal as she sighed and returned to blankly standing around.

"Ah crud…" Bronco groaned, before getting an idea. "Yanna! You can use Psychic abilities, don't you?"

Yanna shrugged. "Yeah. Should I start using-"

Suddenly she was blasted off the boat by Celeste, now confident using her contraption.

"Bullseye!" She said, gladly exchanging pleased nods with Quinn.

Yanna resurfaced and sighed. "Too late for that then…"

She began swimming back to shore as Icelyn and Joseph continued firing away with the help of Bronco and Nora holding up the balloons for them.

As for the rest of their team, Fynn and Paisley were left to start filling up more balloons. Keone, just standing by, grunted and scratched his head.

"The hell should I even be doing…" He grunted.

When he saw the next shot of water coming their way, he saw it fly right passed Fynn and Paisley without the two even noticing. Keone went wide-eyed and saw that Torvald on the other side was readying another shot.

"Shit…!" He said under his breath before running over to the two.

Torvald smiled and aimed his hose, blasting another burst of water. Keone skid right in front of the two, crossing his arms up to try blocking the hit. However, from both the pressure and the type disadvantage, Keone grunted as he was sent back. Paisley cried out as she was suddenly pushed into the water with him.

"Alright!" Cheered Torvald, exchanging high fives with Celeste.

"Lovely shot!" Celeste complimented.

Joseph looked around himself. He could see his team was down to just a few members as the other team had plenty enough still in. He saw that only Sergio was waiting by the other boat as the others returned to the beach. He took notice of Kimber swimming around them as well.

"What to do…" He analyzed to himself.

On the other boat, Torvald and Celeste continued firing away as the rest of the team still on the boat just stood by watching and dodging all the balloons the other team was sending their way.

"What an easy win…" Muriel sighed, pleased by their progress. She looked into the water right as Sergio popped out and grabbed her by the hair.

" _Psyche_!" He smirked.

"Hey there-" She smiled before getting dragged into the water.

"Muriel!" Wheat called after her.

"Hmph!" Sascha stood up sternly. "I'm confident on how to shred the enemies asunder!"

Sascha dove into the water and swam underwater towards the other boat.

"Where are you going!?" Quinn shouted after her.

Joseph noticed her jump in and was stunned by the sudden move.

"What in the world is _she_ hoping to do?" He asked himself.

Suddenly, Sascha jumped out from the water and chomped down onto the tip of the slingshot he was using.

"What in the-!?" He shouted, grabbing onto his cannon.

However, not having enough time to put his full strength into holding onto it, Sascha pulled herself back down breaking the slingshot off dragging Joseph with it into the water.

"No! _Way_!" Said Wes completely amused.

"The hell did she just do!?" Shouted Bronco.

"Hey! Wes! There's no way that's stupid mutt can do that!" Nora protested at the amused host.

"Yeah, yeah, I know!" Wes shouted back through his megaphone, still feeling amused by what Sascha's action. "Just so you Sharpedos know, halving their only means of shooting is gonna cost you!"

"You never told us that we could be penalized for something like that!" Quinn shouted back.

"No one asked! And this place has rules, you know!" Wes quipped back. "Now it's penalty time! Eelektross, show your stuff!"

"E-Eelektross…!?" Rosie worried.

The Sharpedos were startled from their boat suddenly swaying back and forth. Jumping out from the water, enough Eelektross to match them in numbers landed on their boat.

"EEP!" Cried Rosie before getting punted off squealing by an Eelektross's tail.

"Crap! We gotta get them off!" Quinn commanded.

The Persian jumped at an Eelektross, claws honed for a Fury Swipes. The Eelektross clashed back with a Dragon Claw, knocking aside her claw. Quinn tried to jump back but the Eelektross suddenly shrouded itself in electricity and smashed itself against her, sending her off the boat crashing into the water.

Hugo desperately pushed his hands against an Eelektross, keeping it at bay as it failed to reach down with its own hands. The Eelektross that went for Bonnie was quickly frozen in place by her Psychic before being thrown away by the expressionless Meowstic.

Celeste made quick thinking and blasted her Eelektross using her hose, having to use two shots to knock it back into the water. Instead of trying to do the same, Torvald just gave a friendly wave at the Eelektross before being forcefully tackled off the boat. Wheat had no luck and was punted off easily just like Rosie.

Thurman, who had been sitting silently, watched completely worried for his team with no Eelektross even going after him. Once they were down to just him and a few others, the remaining Eelektross returned to the water.

"Hey! They've been halved!" Bronco pointed out. "We still a got a fighting chance here!"

Bronco handed a balloon to Icelyn who didn't hesitate to fire it. The balloon hit Thurman straight in the head, getting a low "Owch" from him. The Lucario stood up and rubbed his head, looking worriedly around.

"Oh no…" He clutched his head. "All this water wasted! Those Eelektross came because we disrupted their home!"

"Thurman, please! You have to help out!" Pleaded Celeste.

Thurman sighed. "Not when the peace of nature is at stake, I'm afraid…"

Not paying attention, another balloon clocked him straight in the face, knocking him back straight into the water.

"Nice! A clean hit!" Bronco nudged her shoulder, getting a giggle from her.

"Here's some more balloons!" Fynn said, pushing along just a few full balloons.

"Great work, Fynn." Smirked Bronco, bending down to grab them.

His tail swung over the ledge, prompting Kimber to appear out to snatch onto his tail.

"What in tar-" He shouted before getting dragged in by Kimber.

"Bronco!" Fynn and Icelyn called after him.

"Tch. Dramatic wussies…" Nora scoffed.

Icelyn fired another shot, aiming straight for Celeste. However, Bonnie stopped it midair with Psychic. Icelyn frowned and quickly shot another one, which Bonnie used her other paw to hold up that balloon as well.

"I've made the opening!" Icelyn nodded before firing another one.

Bonnie turned away and tossed the balloons away not paying attention to the balloon headed towards her.

"Hugo can catch it!" Hugo said, standing in front of her.

He clasped his hands together too hard, however, popping the balloon and spilling water beneath Bonnie's feet.

"Huh…" She said, looking at the water.

However, Hugo used so much force from grabbing it he accidently conducted a bit of electricity through his hands. Bonnie twitched out getting zapped by him, somehow remaining with a blank face. She got stuck standing up, paralyzed from his move.

"Ah! Hugo is sorry!" He turned around to apologize.

Suddenly a balloon smacked hard against his face, sending him rolling onto the wood and off into the water. Seeing her stuck in place, Icelyn shot their last filled balloon and directly hit Bonnie to send her off the boat.

"We're three to one now! We're gonna win, aren't we!?" Fynn jumped in joy.

"We need more balloons though!" Icelyn noticed her lack of ammunition.

"On it!" Fynn saluted.

He bit onto their remaining bag of balloons and dashed towards the ledge. Celeste, getting a bit worried since she was the last one standing, concentrated her hose at him. She shot one burst, flying past the tiny mouse. However, her second burst hit him straight from behind.

Fynn cried out as he was sent flying, about to go overboard. However, Nora quickly hurried to him and grabbed his tail to toss him back on board. The bag of balloons, however, was shot away from their boat.

"Oof…" He rubbed his head. "Thanks Nora!"

"No thanks yet, Mickey. We're outta balloons now!" Nora gritted her teeth.

"Oh no! What should we do then!?" Worried Fynn.

"No need for alarm! I've got something prepared!" Icelyn informed them, getting the two to exchange confused glances.

Celeste filled up her tank and turned back to face the other team. However, she noticed only Icelyn armed tilting the cannon up.

"Did I… actually knock the other two off?" She questioned.

Icelyn started to pull back the sling, which prompted Celeste to retaliate. She aimed her hose at her and fired off a burst. Icelyn got partially hit from being covered by the tilted slingshot, but the hit caused her to drop it and reveal she had no balloon on her contraption.

"A chance!" She nodded and fired her second shot.

However, the moment she shot it, Icelyn rolled away revealing their secret tactic.

"What?" She raised a brow.

Fynn stood in front of Nora, charging his cheek pouches as the ghost girl held her arms out created a dark energy sphere between her hands.

"This BS ain't gonna work!" Nora shouted.

"It can work! Watch!" Fynn smirked.

Right as the burst of water was about to collide, Fynn shot out electricity followed by Nora shooting out her Shadow Ball attack. The water simply went through the electricity but Nora's shadow ball clashed against it.

The Shadow Ball managed to push through the water blast, pushing the water back. Fynn's line of electricity kept the blast directed.

"M-Marvelous…" Celeste gawked.

The electricity and Shadow Ball faded away, sending the blast of water right back to Celeste. She gulped right as she was hit back and fell straight into the water.

"Holy crap…" Nora said slack-jawed.

"Alright! We did it! We did it!" Fynn cheered, jumping around excitedly.

"Oh, how wonderful!" Icelyn smiled.

"And through that miracle, the Diehard Wailords beat the Gallant Sharpedos!" Wes announced.

Sergio and Kimber, who were the only ones in the water, swam back to shore. Sergio snickered at the Ursaring.

"Sucks to suck, huh sucker?" He boasted.

Kimber snarled and started sharpening her claws against each other, eerily stalking towards him.

"Wanna gloat so more, minced meat…?" She growled.

Sergio stepped back in fear. "Oh crud…"

Sergio ran through shallow water, shouting in terror as Kimber chased after on all fours, growling intensely.

"Wow! It's the exact opposite of a happy couple on a beach…" Leo joked, watching the chase.

"Congrats, Wailords for quickly breaking your losing streak." Said Wes. "Thanks to those three, you're all safe from elimination!"

"Alright!" Cheered Paisley.

Deon bent down to high five Leo as she cheered away.

"And for the Gallant Sharpedos… _You're_ not safe tonight, so choose who to boot and meet me at the bonfire tonight!" Wes concluded.

Quinn groaned. She glared to her sides, seeing Sascha sheepishly standing by and Thurman sighing in defeat.

 **0000000**

" **Thurman can help the environment on his time. Not here." Huffed Quinn.**

 **0000000**

" **Someone who makes mistakes are setbacks. So bye-bye wolfie…" Said Kimber.**

 **0000000**

" **T-Thurman's been really nice, a-and seeing some of the others deciding for Sascha too…" Dusty nervously tapped his claws together.**

" **S-Sorry Sascha!" He apologized as if she were right in front of him.**

 **0000000**

" **Sascha's so much weirder than Thurman." Said Muriel. "So I want her to stay around. More fun Pokemon makes this place thrilling."**

 **0000000**

" **I… do hope the team can forgive my mistake…" Sheepishly said Sascha.**

 **0000000**

" **I do not fear for my elimination." Said Thurman. "Everyone will understand life's more than the means to rewards."**

* * *

 **0000000**

At the bonfire pit, the Gallant Sharpedos waited on their stumps as Wes held his plate of various colored marshmallows.

"As you remember, these stale old treats are your symbols of immunity. Get one, you're safe for tonight. But… the one to be left without a marshmallow will never, ever, _ever_ … be back in this competition."

" _There's some better off like that…_ " Quinn murmured to herself.

"What was that?" Asked Celeste.

"S-Sorry, just… can't help but feel anxious in this situation…" Quinn lied. Celeste patted her back and the two exchanged tired smiles.

"When I call your name, come on up and take your marshmallow." Said Wes. "First one gets to go to… Celeste."

Celeste nodded and calmly went up.

"...Bonnie."

The Meowstic brushed her fur aside and walked on up.

"...Torvald."

Torvald grinned and ran up to grab his treat.

"...Quinn, Kimber. You two are safe."

The two didn't say a word as they both eyed back lowly glaring at their selected nominations.

"Let's see…" Wes tapped his chin. "Bonnie, Grey, and Rosie. You three are good too."

Grey and Rosie exchanged weak smiles before anxiously going up, Bonnie silently following along.

"Wheat… Dusty… and Muriel. All safe."

Wheat wagged his little tail before dashing up. Dusty, creeped out by Muriel blankly staring at him while drooling, rushed up to Wes albeit being trailed by her.

Thurman just remained sitting in a serious fashion as Sascha bit her lip in anticipation.

"For the two who blew it the most, you guys _definitely_ deserve bottom two tonight." Wes mocked them. "But who to keep: the non-helpful hippie, or helps-herself lone wolf."

"I'm sorry…" Sascha lowered her head.

"I wish to stand by my beliefs is all." Shrugged Thurman.

"Well, let's see where going solo gets you while you're in teams…" Frowned Wes. "The final marshmallow goes to… Sascha."

Sascha sighed relief before walking up as Thurman sighed in defeat.

"I guess my journey ends here then…" He admitted in defeat.

"Yep! I'm afraid your ship has sunk, my dude." Said Wes. "And by afraid, I mean amused. _Entirely_ amused. So see ya never, hippie boy!"

Thurman sighed one final time before walking down the dock.

 **0000000**

" **If I must go down for what I stand by, then so be it." Shrugged Thurman. "The prize money could've been beneficial for environmental research and preservation, but alas, I wasn't able to make it…"**

" **My choices for who should win…? I would say Torvald and Celeste are the best candidates. Torvald is the only pure Pokemon I've ever seen and Celeste is one a spiritual level like mine."**

" **Farewell, viewing world. Hello once again… real world." He sighed in delight.**

* * *

 **0000000**

Deon knocked out the girls' door of their cabin. Alexandria opened the door, eyeing both him and Leo grinning aside to him.

"My guess is Paisley…?" Asked Alexandria.

"Y-Yeah…" Deon sheepishly rubbed his head.

Alexandria scooted away as Paisley jumped in.

"Hey guys! What's up?" She smiled.

"We just wanted to say… congrats, I guess." Deon blushed.

"If it wasn't for the water, you would've been on fire today!" Grinned Leo.

"Awww… Thanks so much, dorks!" She hugged the two of them. "Hey, why don't you guys hang out with me? We can have so much fun together!"

"Sounds like a plan to me!" Grinned Leo.

"I-I'm down for that too…" Deon weakly smiled.

"We'll be the best trio than a Dugtrio!" Paisley joked.

"Woah! That's a good one! Haha!" Chuckled Leo.

Paisley joined in giggling. Deon rubbed the back of his head as he shyly chuckled along.

* * *

 **And with that, the chapter is done! I would love to hear feedback in the reviews! I'm comfortable with taking criticism too. It'd really help since it's hard to tell by myself if I'm really making progress with the story. Well, thanks for sticking around!**

 **See! Ya!**


	6. The Dodgeball Conundrum

**Hey! Ya!**

 **Don't really have much to say today, but I hope you enjoy the story as it keeps going!**

* * *

Despite it being way into the afternoon, Keone snored away in his bed alone in the cabin. He slept over his sheets which got completely disarranged throughout the nights. He faced himself away towards the wall so he could ignore even seeing the rest of the cabin.

Fynn, poking himself out from behind the door, smiled as he spotted the Lycanroc in the cabin. He scurried over to him and flung himself onto his dangling sheets. He quickly climbed his way up then took a seat on the wolf's chest.

" _Keone…! Keone…!_ " Fynn whispered, repeatedly patting the wolf's chest.

"Ugh… The hell…?" Keone groaned before burying his head under the pillow.

"Keone! You wanna hang out with me at the beach? Please…?" Fynn begged.

Keone gave a muffled scoff. "Please leave me alone…"

"But you can't sleep in here all day, silly!" The Dedenne teased.

Keone sighed and tossed his pillow to the floor, tiredly raising a brow at him.

"What's your deal…?" He asked, already exhausted by their conversation. "The hell can you get out of someone like me…?"

"A fun friend, I hope!" Smiled Fynn.

Keone sighed and rolled his eyes. "Fun times don't want me involved in any way, so it's useless…"

He turned over, making Fynn jump off aside to him. The Dedenne pouted and grabbed ahold of one of is claws.

"Come on, Keone! We can have a lot of fun together, I promise!" Fynn stated, tugging away. "Pretty please!"

Knocking on the door, Icelyn peeked inside curious from the noise.

"Is everything alright?" She asked.

"Mhm!" Fynn nodded. "I'm just trying to get Keone to wake up!"

Hearing Icelyn in the room, Keone pulled his covers up to hide his face. Icelyn, seeing the two, giggled amusedly.

"Icelyn thinks your friendship is very adorable!" She complimented.

"Heehee! Wait until you see us become best friends!" Smiled Fynn.

Listening to them, Keone groaned completely flustered under his covers.

" _Dammit, I'm just shit… Leave me alone…_ " He said under his breath, clenching his paw.

"Keone?" Icelyn spoke up. "Why don't you come outside? It can't be a lovely day when you're cooped up inside…"

" _Please… just piss off…_ " Keone cursed to himself.

"C'mon!" Fynn continued tugging at him. "Let's go, let's go, let's go!"

Keone groaned and sat himself up, earning a delighted smile from the playful mouse. He rubbed the back of his neck as he gave them an exhausted look.

"Seriously…?" He questioned them.

Icelyn and Fynn both nodded with honest smiles. Keone just rolled his eyes and stepped out of bed.

"There, I'm getting up…" He said, walking away from his bed.

"Alright!" Fynn gleamed.

The Dedenne excitedly rushed his way up Keone's body, getting a bewildered look from him. Fynn burrowed into his mane, popping his head out from the top of his head.

"Let's go have some fun!" Exclaimed Fynn.

Keone slouched and groaned, walking out of the cabin with his unwanted companion staying nicely within his fur. Icelyn stepped out and giggled seeing the two head off.

 **0000000**

" **Icelyn is no stranger to helping someone who's troubled. Icelyn wishes them the best of the world!" Icelyn smiled.**

 **0000000**

" **Here comes the same routine bullshit as always…" Sighed Keone.**

" **Getting me to socialize… just isn't going to cut it. Everyone has standards, so I'm doomed to make friends from the start. Can't see why they try to put in some fake hope for me…"**

 **0000000**

Bronco stood next to Icelyn, whistling at the grumpy Lycanroc walking away with a friend.

"Dang. Didn't think he liked having a buddy to tag along with him." Bronco said impressed.

"Icelyn saw how much Fynn wanted to be friends with him. With the bit of hope he gives him, I'm sure Keone will come to start feeling better." Icelyn smiled.

"Hope so. His social skills ain't made him much of a team player." Bronco remarked.

"So what brings you here?" Icelyn asked curiously.

"Hmph." Bronco smirked. "If you'd have the time, I'd much appreciate if we could discuss something. Care to spare some time?"

"Icelyn is curious… but more than happy to come along!" Icelyn agreed.

"Follow me then." Bronco said before the two walked off together.

Joseph, seeing the two from the edge of the forest, was glaring at them before scoffing it off. He headed into the woods, making his way to his alliance's meeting spot.

Alexandria boredly leaned against a tree waiting for their 'leader' to arrive. Nora was busy reading a comic book on Sergio's back as the Machoke indulged himself in doing pushups. Joseph walked in, sternly looking over his team.

"So, Joseph…" Alexandria spoke up. "Are you elaborating further on your plan for this meeting?"

"Of course." The Sawk smirked. "After thorough analyzation since last time, I've decided on our first target."

"We still picking off one of the dumb underdogs?" Nora asked, paying more attention to her comic.

"Hmph! Better be picking you off…" Murmured Sergio, keeping with his push ups.

"Pft! I ain't an underdog, fathead." Nora smirked, earning a scowl from the Machoke.

"So, who will be our target?" Alexandria raised a brow.

"By importance that each player has, we'll begin by picking off Leo." Joseph answered.

Alexandria was taken back by the choice. Sergio paused his workout and snickered at him.

"The ton of fun? Yeah, what could _he_ even do?" He taunted.

"It wouldn't be because he could evolve, I assume?" Alexandria asked.

"It's come to my attention that he's beginning to socialize with Deon and Paisley." Joseph stated. "Those three, certainly underdogs of this competition, should be the ones to go. To do that, we aim on taking Leo out."

"Why… _specifically_ him?" Alexandria pressed further.

"He's the link between those other two. Cutting him off will leave the fragile Gallade and loudmouthed Flaaffy to burn themselves out sooner or later." Explained Joseph. "The earlier we take him out, the better chances of more votes against him.

"...very well then." Alexandria agreed. "How will we do this? Sabotage, or simply convincing the others?"

"Both of course." Said Joseph. "Make him look bad and convincing others to vote him off becomes less of a task."

"Sweet! I'm all about humiliation!" Laughed Nora still on Sergio's back. "You should've seen how I stole Dusty's comic earlier. The sap's probably still stuck in a toilet!"

Joseph frowned. "I don't care for what you did, but… if you're good, then go ahead in having Leo dig his own grave next challenge."

"On it, bossman." Nora casually threw him a finger gun.

Alexandria glared at Joseph, but decided to drop it and started heading off from their spot.

"Where are you off to?" Joseph raised his brow.

"To my own business. Figured you'd know how to keep to yourself.." The Prinplup retorted before walking away.

Joseph glared her down without a word.

"Ouch. You got shut down, dude." Smirked Nora. "Care to take the smartass out instead?"

"Maybe another day…" Joseph smirked back.

Alexandria walked out of the forest, frowning in thought. She glanced back at the forest before sighing.

"You alright there?" Asked Bronco, walking by.

"Of course." Alexandria smirked. "These challenges haven't gotten the best of me just yet."

"That's the spirit." Bronco smirked back. "Say, can you join me for a moment? I'd like to discuss something important."

Alexandria shrugged. "I'm free at the moment, so I'll come."

Bronco nodded over to their cabin, which she understood and proceeded to head over there with him. Stepping inside the girl's half, Alexandria immediately took notice of Icelyn and Yanna waiting inside.

"I'm not getting ganged on now, am I?" The Prinplup joked.

Bronco snorted. "Yeah. We're gonna pummel you for your cooperation."

"Let's get her…" Yanna faked sarcastically.

"I-Icelyn doesn't tolerate this kind of humor!" Icelyn objected, slightly panicked.

"Don't worry, it's all just fun and games." Bronco smiled.

"So what exactly brings us here…?" Alexandria questioned.

Bronco lightly kicked the door closed, crossing his arms and smirking.

"With the three of you, I reckon we should form an alliance."

"...an alliance, hm?" Alexandria played off curiosity. "Well then… I _might_ already be interested in tagging along with this."

"Icelyn has a lot trust and faith in you Bronco, so count her in!" Icelyn gladly decided.

Yanna shrugged. "Count me in I guess."

"Great! Right to the point!" Bronco eagerly punched his fists together. "We're a small group but I promise I'll get us to the final four!"

"Icelyn loves this! Let's work together to win together!" Icelyn clapped.

"This is sure to be interesting…" Alexandria commented. "Just for amusement… do you have a name for us? A group needs a group name, after all."

"Ooh! Icelyn would love for our little team to have a name!" The Lilligant gleamed.

"Easy." Smirked Bronco. "We're Hurricane Company, like a military group name! Our enemies won't get any luck in getting rid of us!"

"A strong name for a strong team…" Alexandria smirked and rolled her eyes.

 **0000000**

" _ **Two**_ **alliances, huh…" Alexandria smirked, amused by her situation. "Bronco and Joseph have given me the playing cards, so with the way I play them, I've got the arsenal to get my way to the top."**

" **Of course, Bronco's alliance is much more promising than the so-called 'Moon Platoon.' Joseph's alliance is there as cannon fodder for me. Bronco and the others are certainly more trustworthy and reliable. Now, let's see what I can do with the odds in my favor…"**

 **Alexandria proudly chuckled to herself.**

 **0000000**

In the mess hall kitchen, Celeste laid out handleless tea cups on a tray and calmly poured steaming tea into each cup. Once they were filled up, Celeste lifted the tray and headed towards the door.

"Thank you Lloyd for allowing me to use the kitchen." She bowed.

"Whatever…" Lloyd shrugged. "Remember you owe me dish duty tonight…"

"I'd be more than happy to." She smiled before heading out the door.

Celeste carried the tray out, sniffing the scent of the freshly brewed tea. She made her way to the table where Dusty sat across Paisley and her two new buddies. She took a seat right next to the moping Sandslash and placed the tray down between them all.

"Oolong tea, anyone?" She asked.

"N-No thanks…" Dusty declined sheepishly.

"I'll try some, I guess…" Deon accepted sheepishly, picking a cup for himself.

"Ooh! I'll try it out!" Leo grinned, gladly grabbing a cup.

Leo opened his mouth and splashed the scalding tea down his throat. Immediately regretting his mistake, Leo coughed out and started fanning off his tongue.

"OOF! HOT, HOT, HOT!" He desperately yelled in pain.

Paisley slapped the table and started howling in amusement, as Deon and Celeste chuckled along.

"C'mon Leo, you should know tea's really hot…" Deon teased.

"I know, bro! But it's been so _oolong_ since I've had any tea!" Leo joked, despite still fanning off his burning tongue.

Deon chuckled shaking his head as Paisley continued cackling. Celeste giggled being amused by them, though Dusty just anxiously sighed as he watched them.

"By the way… your team's not gonna be mad at you, are they?" Deon asked concernedly.

"Certainly not for spending time with those from the opposite team." Celeste assured. "At most, we're only rivals to each other on this show, and I believe there can be a fun rivalry in midst of a game."

"Yep-yep! I love a good rivalry, but usually in a eating or comedy contest!" Leo boasted.

"What was the highest place you've gotten, last?" Paisley heckled.

"I-I'm sure he does fine…" Deon defended him.

Paisley snorted with laughter. "Take the joke, Deon! Tee hee!"

Intended to be playfully, she slugged him in the arm making the Gallade slide off his seat and fall onto the floor.

"Ouch, Paisley…" He winced, rubbing his arm.

"Haha! You've _fallen_ for her, haven't you bro?" Leo laughed.

Paisley giggled and blushed. "Don't be such a sap, Leo!"

"Playfully" slugging him in the arm like Deon as he howled with laughter, Paisley punched him straight in the face, harshly knocking him off his seat. Since the wooden floors were old and worn out, Leo crashed right through sending him beneath the mess hall.

"Woah!" Deon shouted, rushing over to the hole. "Are you okay?"

"Ugh…" Leo groaned, rubbing his aching head. "I've been a _hole_ lot better, hehe…"

Deon chuckled as Paisley cackled with laughter from his pun despite the Munchlax being injured. Celeste anxiously sighed, getting a concerned glance from Dusty.

"A-Are you okay Celeste…?" The Sandslash asked.

"I'm just a bit concerned with the excitement of everyone, is all." Celeste smiled to assure him.

"C-Cool, cool…" He mumbled, facing his blushing face away from her.

 **0000000**

" **Oh…" Dusty groaned, sulking back against the toilet. "I wanna ask her if she's my friend, c-'cause I can never tell if someone likes hanging out with me! B-But I feel like I'll make things awkward if I show her I have doubts. Ugh… It'd be a whole lot worse if I was asking her to be my girlfriend…"**

 **Dusty immediately froze and his whole face became flushed.**

" **A-Ah! I-I shouldn't have thought about it! It's gross to think I could actually do something like that! Just ignore it!" He panicked.**

 **0000000**

"ATTENTION CAMPERS! GUESS WHAT!? IIIIIIT'S CHALLENGE TIME!" Wes announced from the camp speakers.

"Aw man…" Dusty groaned.

"It's okay. Together as a team, we'll be sure to unite and win!" Celeste assured.

She grabbed onto his arm and nodded towards the doors.

"C'mon, let's go win today!" Celeste smiled.

"O-Okay…" Dusty blushed in awe, following her out.

"Let's go too! With the three of us, we're sure to kick butt!" Paisley nodded confidently.

"Then… yeah, let's go win!" Deon nodded back.

The two eagerly ran out the doors and quickly down the steps. However, Deon halted and turned back to the mess hall.

"Ah! We forgot about Leo!" Panicked Deon.

Suddenly, Leo bursted out from the lower wall of the mess hall with a Tackle, grinning excitedly.

"All right! We're the three musketeers! WOOHOO!" He cheered.

"WHAT THE- WHY IS THERE A HOLE IN THE FLOOR!?" Lloyd yelled from the mess hall.

"Ah! We gotta go!" Paisley panicked, running away with the other two in fear.

* * *

The two teams gathered in a field marked with a large round chalk circle resembling a PokeBall's design. Wes had the two teams separated on each side, as he and Lloyd sat on tall referee seats at the sidelines. Each team also had a wooden bleacher set up.

"Aw yeah! It's sport time, isn't it!?" Sergio said thrilled out.

"Yep!" Wes smirked. "Today's challenge is the simple but entertaining game… of _dodgeball_!"

Wes snapped his fingers, to which Lloyd groaned and snapped his own fingers. Ten dodgeballs spawned onto the dividing line, rowed up for the game to begin.

"Oh, I'm gonna pummel the shit out of the other team." Sergio smirked, cracking his fists.

"Yeesh. Chill out, man…" Bronco told him, a bit weirded out by his aggression.

"May you proceed with explaining the rules, please?" Alexandria asked, wanting to keep the game going.

"Of course." Smirked Wes. "For this challenge, it'll be under typical dodgeball rules. Throw a ball and manage to hit someone…"

Lloyd suddenly levitated a ball then flicked it, managing to send it off at a rocketing speed. The ball immediately hit Dusty against his stomach, making the Sandslash wheeze out in pain.

" _I think my kidneys just popped…_ " He wheezed, clutching his stomach as he fell over.

"...and you're out." Wes continued. "Of course, _catching_ the ball will get the thrower out. For example…"

Dusty looked up, only to get struck in the face by another ball.

"AGH!" He yelled, holding onto his face in pain.

"Wes!" Celeste frowned. "That wasn't even an example for what you said!"

"I know. I just like the sounds of someone pathetic getting injured over and over again." Wes said deviously. "For example…"

Lloyd spawned a bunch of balls over Dusty and dropped them all, pelting and burying the Sandslash.

"Ow…" His muffled voice groaned out.

"This is how it'll go down. Every member of the team will go on at once, so it's full team versus full team! Moves are also allowed so long as they're only used for throwing the balls. There will only be one game, so the team left standing wins!"

"You're not gonna have much of an episode then…" Sergio cockily declared.

"HA! You're gonna get your ass out first, just watch!" Smirked Nora.

"Shut it! In sports, I'm the one who always dominates in tearing down my enemies _and_ doesn't need stupid ass teamwork for it!"

"Good for you…" Wes rolled his eyes. "Now stand by for a good' ol fashioned dodgeball brawl!"

"Alright fellas, what's the game plan here?" Bronco asked.

"Throw, dodge, and throw some more!" Fynn shouted eagerly.

"Yeah! Let's kick their butts!" Leo joined in.

Bronco rolled his eyes, amused by the two. Alexandria suddenly approached him, grabbing onto his shoulder.

"Shall we 'cooperate' during challenges as well?" She asked him.

"Sure thing." He nodded. "A team's a team, after all. Just don't make it too obvious, alright?"

"That's very easy to promise…" She teased before walking away.

Joseph glared her down as she walked away, then glared over at Bronco.

"What're they up to…?" He muttered to himself.

"Okay campers, ready?" Asked Wes.

"We're ready as always, Wes!" Icelyn pumped her arms.

"Okay then, give us all you got!" Quinn retaliated sportfully.

"Alright then… game on!" Yelled Wes before blowing his whistle.

On cue, some of the campers dashed for the middle to snag themselves dodgeballs. Going in for the Wailords, Sergio, Joseph, Nora, Fynn, and Icelyn rushed forward, and as for the Sharpedos, Kimber, Quinn, Sascha, Wheat, and surprisingly Muriel went for the balls.

Getting there first with quick speed, Sascha was able to bite down on a ball. However, she immediately jumped back to save her shot. Sergio bolted to the line next, grabbing two balls for himself. He smirked as he shot them with blistering speeds, pelting Quinn in the face and Kimber right in the throat.

"Ow, fuck!" Quinn yelled, shaking her head from the pain.

Kimber, having been hit directly in the throat, clutched onto her neck as she gasped out for air.

"You… piece of… shit…" She wheezed out, glaring at the cocky Machoke.

"Serves you right, dickhead! _Boomtown_!" Sergio boasted.

However, that one moment of cockiness costed him, as Wheat rolled up to a ball and bumped into it sending it right into his shoulder.

"Ah! What the-" Sergio flinched.

"Alright! I got a hit!" Wheat wagged his tail before rolling back.

Wes blew on his whistle, pointing over to them.

"Quinn, Kimber, and Sergio are out! Get your sorry selves over to the loser benches!" Wes called.

"Of course…" Quinn muttered.

"You're a big freakin' piece of trash, you know that!?" Kimber scowled at Sergio.

"Says the dumbass who couldn't even _touch_ a ball! Haha!" Sergio provoked her.

Kimber gritted her teeth and fumed with pure rage, glaring down the Sergio as he ran off the field laughing.

"I'm gonna kill the fucker later…" Kimber growled, running off to her team's bench. Quinn sighed, shaking her head as she followed.

 **0000000**

" **Even though she's the only powerhouse we have, I won't hesitate to dispose her if she makes us lose from her temper." Quinn frowned.**

 **0000000**

Thanks to Sergio throwing two balls over to their side, the Sharpedos held majority of the balls. Bronco, clutching onto one, held his up steadily ready to deflect any oncoming shots.

"Wait 'em out, or strike now?" Bronco glanced back at his team.

"If we wait they'll figure it out, so let's hit them while we can." Alexandria advised.

"Got it." He smirked.

He motioned Joseph and Deon, both holding balls, to strike together. Joseph nodded, rolling his eyes to himself, as Deon gulped but readied himself to throw.

The three charged forward and one by one threw their shots. Celeste easily stepped aside dodging Deon's shot. Torvald showed off and did the splits, flamboyantly raising his hands in the air, avoiding Joseph's shot, much to the Sawk's bewilderment. Bronco's shot headed straight for Muriel. However, the Gourgeist shuddered in amusement before firing off a Razor Leaf to shred the ball up. The slashed pieces of rubber just plopped right down, making Bronco grunt in annoyance.

"Great job, Muriel!" Wheat cheered.

Wes annoyingly blew onto his whistle. "Hey! I said moves could be used for _throwing_ the ball! So you're out, freakaboo!"

"Whoops. Heh heh~" She chuckled as she waddled away.

"Oh…" Wheat blinked.

"Everyone, hear me out! I've devised a strategy!" Sascha announced. "Place the balls down!"

Her teammates gave her confused looks, but decided to follow along and placed the balls on the ground. Sascha step behind them, then took in a deep breath. The Wailords watched curiously but confused at what her plan was.

Sascha thundered out a powerful Roar attack, spreading out dodgeballs flying off at rapid speeds.

"Oh damn! Dodge!" Bronco alerted, ducking to avoid taking a hit.

Immediately, Deon rushed back and roughly tackled a panicked Paisley and Leo down getting them out of the way of fire. Joseph and Alexandria easily leaped out of the way, as others tried their best to dodge the flurry.

Keone, however, just tiredly looked at the incoming balls and rolled his eyes. He effortlessly stuck his hand out, catching a ball without any recoil.

"Oh shit! Haha!" Laughed Wes before blowing on his whistle. "Sascha, out!"

"C-Curses…" Sascha grunted in frustration before running off to the sidelines.

As the Lycanroc took a seat, Quinn rolled her eyes.

"Stop trying to prove yourself. It cost us _twice_ now." The Persian glared.

"I only wish for triumphant victory for the team!" Sascha defended herself.

"Well if wishes came true, then you'd already be long gone from here…" Quinn remarked. Sascha glared at her before the two looked back at the field.

"C'mon! Beat their faces in!" Kimber shouted.

"Way to go, Keone! That was super cool!" Fynn cheered.

"Yeah, sure…" Keone scoffed at him.

"Hey, Wes!" Nora called out to the host. "All the balls flew away! The hell now!?"

Wes gladly snapped his fingers, propping Lloyd to spawn more dodgeballs onto the field. He did a rather careless job, as there were more balls than before and they were scattered all over the makeshift court.

"Now game on!" Wes called.

Torvald, standing right by a ball, smiled and pulled out his stick. He hung it low like a golf club then swung at the ball.

Deon, pulling Leo and Paisley back up, yelped as he was knocked in the head by Torvald's hit.

"Ow…" He winced.

Wes blew his whistle. "Deon, out!"

"Aw man…" He groaned.

"Ah! Sorry, bro! You got hit even though you saved us!" Leo frantically apologized.

"D-Don't sweat it, really! Um… just win this thing, okay?" Deon assured before sprinting off to the bench.

"I gotta stop getting my bro out…" Leo sighed.

"D'aww, it's okay Leo!" Paisley patted his back. "As long as we don't continue sucking, we'll be- OOF!"

Paisley got knocked back, getting struck by a ball. Hugo, blinking as he saw he made a hit, gawked in surprise.

"H-Hugo made a hit, right?" He asked back to his team.

"For sure!" Torvald gave a thumbs up supportively.

 **0000000**

" **Hugo doesn't always get things right, so it's an honor to support my team in anyway!" Hugo chimed.**

 **0000000**

Paisley sat on the bench, rubbing her belly in pain. Deon patted her shoulder to comfort her.

"You're garbage, dudes!" Sergio barked at them. The two just sheepishly lowered their heads. "C'mon, jackasses!" He shouted at his team. "Stop doing one at a time and just keep wailing at them, you pansies!"

"...drop him?" Alexandria raised a brow at Joseph.

"Drop him." Joseph nodded.

 **0000000**

" **I don't require a loudmouthed clown in my ranks. Once Leo's elimination is achieved, we'll get rid off him like the trash he is." Joseph smirked.**

 **0000000**

Together, Bronco and Icelyn rushed forward and both shot their balls at Celeste. The Mienshao huffed smirking and jumped over the both shots. One ball flew by but Torvald cartwheeled by and teasingly let the ball fly by between his legs.

"Darn!" Icelyn swore. "Well, with the next shot, Icelyn will get someone out!"

"Hmph." Bronco smirked, leaning his neck aside to effortlessly dodge a ball. "Love to see it!"

"Shoot!" Wheat pouted before rolling back.

Joseph fired back, aiming to get Torvald out. The Braixen gladly leaped out of the way, but his throw turned out to be a diversion. Nora smirked as she threw her ball low to the ground. When Torvald landed back, Nora's ball hit him in the feet, making him trip and faceplant against the grass.

"Torvald, out!" Wes called.

Torvald lifted up his face and smiled. "Wow! Good play, guys!"

" _Thanks_ , kid!" Nora mocked, earning a sigh from Joseph.

"We're cutting down their numbers. We should be able to win soon enough." Joseph told back to his team.

Noticing a certain member wasn't present, Joseph raised a brow and eyed around. He spotted Leo standing by the sidelines, carelessly chatting away with Paisley. Deon, seeing Joseph taking notice, gulped and looked worriedly at his friend.

"Um, dude… maybe you should focus on the game again…" Deon tried to warn him.

"So then, haha!" Leo chuckled, telling a story to Paisley. "As the final platter of sandwiches were stuck in my throat, I panicked and tried to wash it down with a bottle of _gray mustard_!"

"Ew, haha! Gross!" Paisley laughed.

"Tch. He'll likely get the votes we need against him…" Joseph smirked.

Celeste threw a ball, aiming to get Keone out. The Lycanroc just sighed and slouched down to avoid it.

"I got it! I got it!" Exclaimed Fynn, popping out of his fur.

Keone's eyes widened. He immediately stood back up, reacting fast enough to take the hit to the face. He buckled back and clutched onto his face as Fynn jumped off his head.

Fynn gasped. "Oh no-"

Fynn got cut off by another ball crashing into him, pressing him against Keone's chest then plopping motionlessly onto the grass.

"H-Hugo got another one!" Hugo said, star-eyed by his personal achievement.

"Keone, Fynn. Out!" Called Wes.

Fynn groaned as he lifted himself off. He shook himself off and rubbed his forehead. He noticed the shadow looming over him and turned around seeing Keone frozen in embarrassment as he was kneeled down to him.

"Oh! Hi ya Keone! Whatchu doing?" Fynn asked playfully.

"J-Just helping…" Keone blushed before walking away.

"Wait for me!" Fynn smiled, running after him.

 **0000000**

 **Keone groaned out loud, dragging his face.**

" **Gimme a break…" He groaned.**

 **0000000**

Spotting a ball close to the centerline, Celeste rushed towards it staying cautious of anyone aiming to get her out. Bronco noticed her running closer and quickly wanted to take the chance. He dashed forward, gripping onto his dodgeball tightly. Right as Celeste went for hers, Bronco pitched the ball with heavy force. However, Celeste passionately spun around the hit and retaliated with the ball she grabbed. The ball curved in the air and struck Bronco right in the side of his head, making him fumble back and buckle down to his knees.

Wes blew his whistle. "Bronco, out!"

"Dang…" The Krokorok sighed before sprinting off the field.

"Here I come!" Icelyn shouted as she charged ahead, throwing her ball sharply.

Despite the speedy throw, Celeste bounced up and snatched the ball right as it passed under her. Before landing back down, she quickly shot the ball aiming for Leo. The Munchlax, actually paying attention to the game, yelped and ducked only for it to go by and strike Nora hard in the gut, making her stumble back a bit.

"Are you kidding me!?" She snapped. "Pay attention, you goober!"

"Gah! Sorry!" Leo apologized.

"C'mon man…" Bronco sighed. Seeing this, Joseph smirked confidently to himself.

"Icelyn, Nora. Out!" Wes called.

Icelyn sighed and walked off the field followed by an annoyed Nora.

Celeste flipped back to her team's end of the field. Wheat rolled up to her and gazed at her star-eyed.

"Woah! That was amazing, Celeste!" Wheat chirped.

"Thank you, Wheat. You're too kind…" Celeste blushed from the compliment.

Joseph, analyzing his opponents left on the field, tried to sort out a weakling to pick off or a threat to knock down. He saw Celeste, Wheat, and Hugo putting the effort to fire back, but the others were idling around unprepared to make a move. Grey stood by ready to block or catch a shot as Rosie cowered behind his leg, and Dusty was trembling as he barely dodged a ball here and there. Bonnie just stood in the back watching without doing anything.

Joseph grunted to himself before deciding to make his move. He swung his arm low, releasing his shot as it launched low to the ground. Celeste and Wheat easily dodged out of the way, but Dusty got immediately frightened and didn't react fast enough. The ball him in straight into his crotch, making him freeze up in pain.

"I… was not aiming for _that_ …" Joseph said to himself, blinking in surprise.

Dusty's face winced up and got blue faced, falling over to his side as he clutched onto his hurt lower region. His team, on both the field and the benches, flinched seeing him get hit so hard.

"Yo… His baby maker got messed up badly, hehe…" Muriel commented.

Taking the brief opening from the distraction, Alexandria grabbed two balls from the ground and swung them at the two least suspecting pokemon.

As Celeste was turned around worriedly watching Dusty get dragged off in pain by Torvald, one of Alexandria's shots impacted against her back. Celeste fumbled forward, wincing as she rubbed her back. Hugo, who was confused by what happened from failing to pay attention, was struck in the face by the second ball. He was unfazed as he rubbed his head confused.

"Celeste, Hugo. Out!" Wes called.

"Alright, you tied it now! Get 'em good!" Bronco supported from the bench.

Sergio scoffed. "The Sharpedos are a bunch of wusses and wimps. We could've beat their asses in the first second!"

"Wait… If they're weak, how come you got out first?" Paisley asked, tilting her head.

Bronco lowered his head to hide his chuckling as Keone and Nora didn't bother to hide their snickering. Sergio fumed angrily but sat back down just seething to himself.

On the field, Wheat rolled up towards the center to grab a ball by the crossing line. Yanna, who floated in the back reading her book, glanced at him and shrugged. She levitated a ball from their side of the field and launched it. However, though the ball hit him, his rolling made the ball shoot right back to their side.

Leo, who picked up a ball, grinned proudly.

"Time to drop some balls!" Leo joked.

"Don't ever say that again, ya nasty!" Nora frowned from the bench.

Not seeing it coming, the ricocheted ball struck him right in the forehead. The Munchlax stood dazed for a moment before falling back from the dizziness.

"Wheat, Leo. Out!" Wes called.

Wheat unfolded from his rolling position and skidded, wide-eyed in surprise.

"What!? Aw man…" He pouted before rolling off the field.

"Ah shoot! Hold on a second Leo!" Deon called after him, rushing out to the field followed by Paisley.

The two dragged the groaning Munchlax off the field as the game kept going. Down to just three against the three, the game was near its end. For the Diehard Wailords, only Joseph, Alexandria, and Yanna remained. As for the Gallant Sharpedos, only Bonnie, Rosie, and Grey remained.

"We're gonna lose…" Kimber groaned.

"Not with _her_ on the team." Quinn objected. "Bonnie! Use your psychic powers and get them out!"

Bonnie shrugged. "Alright."

"Tch." Joseph rolled his eyes. "She's rather useless, so the chance of her getting a hit is nearly nonexistent."

"Maybe, but we'll still fight fire with fire." Alexandria smirked. "Yanna?"

"On it." The Abra confirmed.

Yanna levitated most of the balls, being on their side of the field, and held them above herself ready to barrage the other team. Grey gulped and stepped back, Rosie cowering further behind his leg.

Bonnie stood there blankly looking up Yanna's arsenal, only to shrug it off. Suddenly, her ears twitched before sticking straight up. Her eyes began glowing as she lifted her arms in the air.

"Woah! We're gonna win _so_ badly right now…" Muriel smirked.

"Um… h-how come?" Dusty asked nervously.

"Like, when a Meowstic lifts up their cute ears, their freakishly tremendous psychic powers come out to play." Muriel explained. "Nothing too dangerous though, hehe…"

Out from the sky, hundreds of balls rocketed towards the field. Everyone looked up terrified with fear of what she's able to do.

"Great. Looks like she found the supply…" Lloyd rolled his eye.

"Holy moly…" Bronco gaped.

"Huh… Yeah, we're dead…" Yanna commented, remaining rather nonchalant about it.

"Hurry up and get her out! _Now_!" Joseph shouted, wide-eyed in panic.

Yanna didn't hesitate to launch the few balls they were armed with straight for the power surging Meowstic. Bonnie, still surging with her psychic abilities, quickly flew a wall of dodgeballs down to block Yanna's shots.

"O-Oh no…" Alexandria stepped back anxiously.

Bonnie sent the storm of the hundreds of dodgeballs down at blistering speeds. Joseph and Alexandria braced themselves for impact, though Yanna just shrugged and lied against the ground as she covered her head. With the fury of her own storm, Bonnie pelted the three Wailords as easily as a hail storm. Once the barrage was over, the three were buried within the massive amount of red rubber balls.

Once her attack was done, Bonnie let her ears down and returned to normal. She sighed as she brushed aside her scarf tuft. Grey and Rosie cowered away from her, shaking where they stood. Everyone in the bleachers were slack-jawed and speechless at what they just spectated.

 **0000000**

" **N-Nobody should have that kinda power!" Dusty shuddered.**

 **0000000**

" **That's too freakish, I won't deny." Joseph commented. "She's…** _ **bizarre**_ **to say the least…"**

 **0000000**

"Hey! There's no way in _hell_ was that fair!" Nora protested.

"Well… She didn't leave the field or cross any lines, _literally_ , so it's acceptable by me! Gallant Sharpedos win!"

"We did it!" Torvald cheered.

"Yay! No elimination for us!" Wheat gleamed.

"Woah, woah! Slow down there." Wes smirked. "We're not done for the day. _That_ was just the first half of today's challenge."

"Impossible!" Sascha protested.

"Nope, it's possible! Don't know why it _wouldn't_ be possible, but whatever." Wes shrugged it off. "The purpose of that game was to get the top seven players from each team for the next part of the challenge. So, everyone who failed early on gets no worth for this."

"God dammit!" Kimber shouted.

"Come on, man! I'm the boomtown beast! I belong in the game, you know!?" Sergio shouted along.

"Sorry, but _I_ make the rules, so what I say goes." Wes countered. "Now, every Sharpedo who got out after Torvald and every Wailords that got out after Keone must step up to the field!"

"Aw man!" Fynn whined to Keone. "If it weren't for me, you'd still be in!"

Keone sighed. "Whatever. There's no problem…"

Fynn sadly sighed back and ran off to the field. Keone eyed him as he ran off, frowning in disappointment with himself. Icelyn patted his shoulder, giving him a sympathetic look.

"Icelyn thinks it would be for the best if you give him a chance." Icelyn recommended.

"...f-fine." Keone turned away, blushing.

On the field, the top seven players were gathered on each side. For the Gallant Sharpedos, Celeste, Hugo, Wheat, and Dusty rejoined the other three left on the field. As for Diehard Wailords, Joseph, Alexandria, Nora, Yanna, Leo, Bronco, and Icelyn returned to the field. Everyone else remained sitting on the bleachers.

"Oh man, I really wanted to play!" Fynn whined.

"Oh?" Icelyn noticed him. "Fynn! Would you care to switch?"

Fynn gasped excitedly and looked up at Wes. "Is that allowed!?"

"Well, if someone of your size insists to replace a bigger player, than knock yourself out." Wes insisted.

Fynn squealed in delight as he ran onto the field. Icelyn smiled, pleased as she took a seat.

"So, what will make this game differ from the last?" Alexandria crossed her arms in questioning.

" _Well…_ this game will at least still be considered dodgeball…" Wes scratched his chin.

"At… least?" Joseph rose a brow.

"Show 'em what we got, Lloyd." Wes smirked to his co-host.

Lloyd extended his hands out, radiating energy from his body. Everyone on the field trembled from the ground shaking drastically. Those in the bleachers watched confused as they weren't shaking at all.

The field suddenly started cracking apart. Chunks of the ground started suddenly floated up, carrying the campers with them.

"W-What in the world!?" Exclaimed Celeste.

"T-This is kinda awesome!" Leo shouted, clutching onto the floating dirt.

Many chunks from the ground rose up and became floating mini isles in the air. About everyone had their own isle as many were scattered between them.

"Introducing to you: Neo-Dodgeball!" Wes shouted.

"W-Why are we so high!?" Dusty shouted, cowering in the center of his isle.

"Because for this part of the challenge, things are going to get way more exciting." Wes took pride in himself. "There are now a few alterations to the rules. One, you're allowed to step on any isle, so there's no division between the teams. Second, to get someone out, you must knock them off the isles _with_ a ball. Any other way and you're disqualified."

"Hitting someone won't get them out?" Wheat asked.

"Yep!" Wes grinned. "Pretty much the game plan here is to jump around and knock your opponents off so you can earn the _actual_ victory. Get it?"

"What about the balls? How are we expected to keep them up here?" Alexandria asked, crossing her arms.

"Gotcha on that! Lloyd, proceed!" Wes arrogantly ordered.

Lloyd groaned and levitated the dodgeballs Bonnie summoned earlier up to the isles. The balls floated around the isles, accessible for campers to easily grab as they jump around, but were grayed out as they were floating around.

"With the balls like this, you can nab them from the air and use them accordingly. The balls are gray while they're left untouched, but return to red when they're grabbed. It's just to make it clearer for you guys." Wes explained.

"Wow!" Wheat wagged his tail in awe. "This is gonna really, really cool!"

"Hugo hopes he can do this…" Hugo admitted timidly.

"Now get ready, 'cause this is the real challenge." Wes shouted to the teams. The host turned to those remaining in the seats. "As for you dump of losers, you're still legible to help out in the challenge. You can strike them from below, assisting your team to victory."

"Ugh. At least we get to do something…" Kimber complained.

Those on the bleachers hustled over to stand beneath the floating isles. With some balls still on the ground, they each picked one up ready to fight back.

"Now then, with no more stuff to discuss… let the mayhem commence!" Wes shouted.

Making the first move, Bronco leaped to another isle catching a ball midair. It changed back to red as he clutched it in his hands. Bronco wasted no time to hurtle his dodgeball towards the other team. The shot rocketed towards Celeste, which she quickly spotting it in the air. The Mienshao swiftly flipped over it, landing onto another isle and catching a floating ball on the way.

Celeste briefly looked for her target, then quickly fired back. Yanna jumped back down to her isle after grabbing a floating ball only to get struck right into the stomach. The featherweight Abra easily got pushed off, falling directly onto the ground flat on her back. Standing next to her, Deon winced at the sight.

"Y-You're all right, right?" He asked concernedly.

"All I can say is… _ow_." Yanna nonchalantly replied.

Grabbing two from the floating pile, Nora rolled back onto an isle and immediately fired her two shots.

"Eat this!" She shouted cockily.

The first ball struck Dusty right in the forehead. The Sandslash flinched but only fell back onto the dirt. Her other shot headed straight for Bonnie, who stood there and stared deadpan at the incoming ball.

Wheat jumped off his isle to catch the shot, rolling onto Bonnie's isle clutching onto the ball.

"Caught it!" Wheat chirped, lying flat on his back and holding the ball like a cat with yarn.

"Hey! Does that get me out!?" Nora glared down at Wes.

"Oh yeah, forgot about that rule…" Wes smirked to himself. "Yep! You guessed it!"

"That's a bunch of bull-SHIT!" She shouted as her isle disintegrated, making her plummet back to the ground.

Wheat kicked the ball off him and rolled back onto his feet, delighted by his save. His personal victory was spoiled, however, as Joseph threw a piercing shot at him easily knocking him off his isle. Wheat yelled the whole way down before being caught by Torvald in his arms. The Phanpy shook his head then gladly smiled at the Braixen.

"Thanks Torvald!" Wheat wagged his tail.

"You're welcome!" Torvald returned with a grin, letting him down.

"Hey Wheat, what was Bonnie doing?" Quinn asked. "Was she helping the team out?"

"Oh! U-Um… s-she was just standing there… Sorry…" Wheat admitted.

Quinn sighed. "No worries. I'll talk to her." The Persian glared up. "Bonnie! Where are you right now!?"

The Meowstic peeped out from the ledge, blankly staring down at Quinn. Seeing this, Quinn scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"Do what you did last round! Use your psychic powers to knock them all off!" Quinn requested.

Bonnie shrugged, but then got immediately hit in the face from someone down below before getting knocked off by someone else's ball from above. The Meowstic remained silent as she plummeted before plopping down onto Sascha's back.

"Hm? Are you okay, Miss Bonnie?" Sascha asked.

"Mm…" Bonnie shrugged.

Quinn grunted and smacked her face, as Wheat worriedly looked at Bonnie.

 **0000000**

" **Bonnie's going to have to leave. The less slackers we have on our team, the more wins we'll earn." Quinn frowned. "I may have not found or created an alliance yet, since my team is full of… well,** _ **softer**_ **pokemon, but maybe a crossover alliance could be beneficial…"**

 **Quinn smirked at the thought.**

 **0000000**

 **Wheat sighed. "Bonnie always seems like she's not having fun here… but I bet she's a really fun person! I wanna help, but how can I do that?"**

 **0000000**

Alexandria surveyed the other team, seeking out the best choice of options. Hugo held a ball in hands as he was alone on his own isle and confusedly tried to seek out who to throw his ball at. Grey held a trembling Rosie on his back as he anxiously readied himself to dodge any balls. She chuckled to herself seeing the two together like that.

Dusty was also anxiously waiting to dodge a ball, and Celeste was the only one jumping around firing back, though she didn't seem to care about it. Smirking, Alexandria decided on a plan. She whistled over to Joseph, turning his attention to her.

"Get closer and aim for Celeste. We'll cover you." Alexandria confidently told him.

"Alright then." Joseph nodded, smacking his ball against his other hand.

The Sawk dashed off his isle, jumping from isle to isle approaching the Mienshao. Celeste, holding a ball in each hand, frowned as she caught notice. She leaped towards him, ready to clash it out. Alexandria, along with Bronco, fired their shots at Celeste.

Caught by surprise, Celeste rushed her move and threw one of her shots at Joseph and keeping the other one. Joseph easily bounced it off his own, then cocked his ball back to throw. Bronco's shot, having more brute force into it, nearly hit Celeste but was blocked off by her ball. The shot managed to make her fumble back. Alexandria's shot, being more precise, struck Celeste directly in the face and teetered her off the isle sending her down.

"Get Grey to jump off the isle!" Alexandria commanded.

Joseph grunted but obliged. He fired his ball with tremendous force, startling the Houndoom enough to make him move. Grey leaped off the isle, but was quickly hit by another ball from down below by a cocky Sergio.

"Eat that, wuss!" Sergio shouted.

Grey fumbled in the air, only managing to land his front paws onto the next isle. He went wide-eyed as he tried to clutch onto the dirt but fell below with a squealing Rosie.

Bonnie, without even a word from herself or someone else, looked up to the falling two and stuck her hand out to use Psychic in stopping Rosie in the air. However, she couldn't affect Grey since he was a dark-type.

The Houndoom almost hit the dirt below, but Quinn pounced off the ground and tumbled away with him to lessen the impact for him.

"Awesome save, Quinn!" Torvald complimented.

Grey, lying on his back, shook his head wearing of the dizzyness. He blinked for a second, then his face burned up seeing Quinn on top of him smirking right at him.

"Some people are dumb enough to use the 'did you fall from heaven' schtick, but right now,I'll make the exception for you~" She winked.

Grey covered his eyes, incredibly flustered by her. Quinn giggled and stepped off, deciding to walk by Sascha who watched the exchange in concern.

"If you want him, try something fun like that, _villager_." Quinn smirked in triumph before walking away.

Sascha growled at her as Quinn chuckled away from her.

Back on the isles, Hugo and Dusty trembled as they faced against the Wailords who outnumbered them with five members.

"Ah crap! We're gonna get messed up!" Dusty trembled in fear.

"H-Hugo can see the odds are against us, but because we're still here, doesn't this mean our team still has a fighting chance?" Hugo asked.

"N-N-Not with me here! I'm just gonna get pummeled like I always do when it comes to sports!" Dusty sputtered.

Hugo frowned, staring at the panicked Sandslash chewing away at the tip of his claws. The Geodude stared up at the floating dodgeballs surrounding them, gripping his fists and nodding to himself.

Standing aside to her on different isles, Joseph and Bronco armed themselves with a ball as Alexandria directed the other two.

"Now, you two will be the long-ranged support. We'll take them head on as you keep them overwhelmed from a safe distance." Alexandria explained to them. "Is that fine by you two?"

"Yes ma'am!" Leo and Fynn playfully saluted.

Alexandria chuckled and turned back, only to get hit right into her beak by a ball. She flinched as she held her beak in slight pain.

"Ow…" She grunted.

Stacking a pile of dodgeballs next to him, Hugo had a personal arsenal ready. He tried to glare seriously but couldn't help and twitch his eye from his unconfidence.

"Hugo doesn't want the team to lose, so… he'll try his best!" Hugo declared.

He began hurling dodgeballs creating a flurry of balls headed straight for the other team. He spread out his shots, trying to target every one of them. Alexandria quickly ducked, avoiding the fire. This propped the others to duck, excluding Joseph.

"He won't win this way." Joseph smirked.

Joseph stuck his hand out to catch a ball. However, once the ball came into contact, the ball bursted with electricity. The mini explosion sent Joseph off the platform, making him roughly land on his feet completely stunned by what he just experienced.

"What in the…?" He murmured, baffled as he looked at his hands.

"He's conducting electricity through them? But they're rubber!" Paisley gaped.

"It's a special kind of rubber!" Wes stated. "I did say you could use your moves to throw them, so I got a special rubber that works well with any type."

"That's stupid! What kind of rubber conducts electricity like that!?" Nora argued.

"We live in a world where we can breathe fire, defy physics, and other wacky crap. I think unreasonable rubber can go along with that." Wes retorted.

Still ducking from the shots, Bronco looked at Alexandria curious as to why she was calmly watching Hugo throwing like a madman.

"Hey! Should I hightail up there and knock him off? I can resist electricity!" Bronco suggested.

"Knock yourself out." The Prinplup replied. "But since he's not paying much attention to where he's aiming, we'll wait until he tires out."

"I'll knock myself out then." Bronco smirked.

Bronco sprinted for him, jumping from isle to isle as he evaded every shot by Hugo,

"We gotta help him out!" Quinn ordered.

She swatted a ball by her up towards the isles, aiming for Bronco as they can see him jump between them.

"Finally…" Kimber rolled her eyes before chucking a ball upwards.

Being the only other ones capable of shooting high ranged shots, Celeste and Torvald joined aiming for Bronco. The Krokorok noticed the balls flying by, which he just smirked at.

"Ain't no way I'll let you fellas down there take me out!" Bronco cheekily shouted.

Hugo started slowing down his throwing, panting tiredly.

"Hugo… is getting very tired by this…" He said in fatigue.

Using the opportunity, Bronco grabbed a ball from the air and readied to throw it. Dusty cowerly squeaked as he saw Bronco about to throw a ball their way. Bronco cocked his arm and swung the ball with full force. The ball was headed straight for the worn out Geodude. However, unexpectedly, Hugo tiredly stuck his hand out and grabbed the shot. Hugo panted, eyeing the ball in confusion.

"Wait… Did Hugo just grab this?" He asked himself.

Bronco sighed. "Yep. Unfortunately…"

Bronco accepted his demise as his platform disintegrated and harshly dropped him back onto the ground.

"Woah! Y-You caught that so fast!" Dusty pointed out. "Your reaction timing is really good!"

"Ah! H-Hugo didn't mean to catch it _too_ fast!" He said in alarm.

Suddenly, a ball struck right into the back with an unusual amount of force. Hugo grunted in pain as he fell down. He started rolling off the floating dirt, which he was too distracted by the pain to notice.

"W-Watch out!" Dusty warned him.

Hugo managed to grab ahold of the ledge, dangling by an arm. He looked down, seeing everyone who was eliminated watching on.

"Easy as a pinata!" Sergio boasted, cocking a ball back.

"Not a chance, fathead!" Kimber shouted, harshly throwing a ball to the Machoke's face. Sergio stumbled back and gritted his teeth in frustration.

"Dodgeball fight!" Torvald encouraged.

"It's a fight _I'll_ win!" Sergio shouted.

The Sharpedos proceed to go against the Wailords in their own dodgeball fight to prevent the other team from going after the two on top. As the two teams battled it out on the ground, Hugo remained dangling barely able to lift himself up.

"H-Hugo can't move! His arms are very tired!" Hugo cried out.

Dusty rushed over to the ledge, however, he was thrown away from the hit of another ball. He fell off the ledge, letting Alexandria to proceed towards Hugo. The Prinplup held a ball in her hand, raising a brow at him.

"I'm not one for dramatic endings, so I'll just get it over with." Alexandria stated.

She cocked the ball back as Hugo braced himself for the hit. However, in the nick of time, she was roughly hit behind her head and was sent off to the ground in a dazed pain. Hugo opened an eye, seeing Dusty shaking as he held a ball in his claws.

"Does that count?" Hugo asked.

"Damn right it does!" Wes shouted amused. "As long as only the ball hit, it's good by me!"

"You fell off, didn't you?" Hugo asked Dusty.

"I-I-I panicked and stuck my claws into the dirt, so… I climbed back up." Dusty sheepishly explained.

"Hugo congratulates you then!" Hugo smiled.

Dusty dropped the ball and grabbed ahold of Hugo's hands to lift him back up. Dusty rushed to hurriedly get him back up, resulting in him pulling up too strong and tossing the Geodude behind him. Hugo raised a brow as he was flipped over the isle.

"Is Hugo out?" He asked briefly as he fell over the ledge.

"A-Ah crap!" Dusty panicked. He turned to the other side, seeing Fynn and Leo smirking eagerly. He anxiously gulped. "I'm a goner…"

"We're the last two! Let's go win this thing!" Fynn encouraged, jumping off onto another isle.

"Yeah!" Leo joined. "But to win dodgeball, we must _become_ the dodgeball!"

Right as Fynn was about to jump to another platform, Leo cannonballed onto the same isle. This made the floating isle tilt back, catapulting Fynn off as Leo fell straight down.

"Woah-but-WHEE!" Fynn shouted as he was sent into a tree.

Leo plummeted into the dirt, disrupting the other dodgeball game below by crashing onto Deon. Leo groaned as he laid on Deon, whose painful groan went muffled from being face down into the dirt.

"Uh…" Wes gaped. "Despite that dumb move being pretty dumb, the Gallant Sharpedos win today's challenge! I guess…"

Dusty sighed and fell back onto the dirt, exhausted both mentally and physically.

"I should've just got bullied at my regular camp this summer…" He complained.

Suddenly, the isles and balls came crashing down. Everyone below shouted and fled away in fear as Dusty screamed the whole way down before crashing along all the dirt. A dirt cloud erupted but cleared up in a moment. The field was now somewhat back to normal, just remaining messy and cracked.

"Um… Dusty?" Celeste looked around worriedly.

Dusty suddenly clawed out from the dirt, shakingly taking a deep breath before passing out onto the ground. Celeste winced before running over.

" _Man_ , what a game everyone!" Wes mockingly clapped. "So, Diehard Wailords, who's up for an elimination ceremony tonight? Don't worry, it's on me, though the _votes_ are on you. See you chumps later!"

"Dammit!" Sergio kicked the dirt. "We couldn't stay undefeated for even _two_ challenges!? This is some bullshit!"

"H-Hey, it's okay!" Deon spoke up, worried about the Machoke's aggression. "We'll have our wins and losses, so we shouldn't worry about it… right?" He asked meekly.

"Buzz off, buzzkill!" Sergio snapped at him.

"Icelyn thinks it would be for the best if we depart for now…" She worriedly suggested.

 **0000000**

" **Sergio's really aggressive…" Deon commented, fidgeting his fingers nervously. "I know it's supposed to be a tough competition, but it'd be a lot better if when just stay positive about, you know?"**

 **Deon sighed and scratched the back of his head.**

 **0000000**

" **It's nice to see our target keep making a fool of himself." Joseph smirked. "With this, any potential the three had will be weakened. I'll be taking their underdog stories from them now…"**

 **0000000**

* * *

Gathered in the mess hall, alliance Hurricane Company sat down and discussed together about choosing their choice for elimination.

"So," Bronco spoke, "anyone got an idea for tonight's pick?"

"Icelyn would like to suggest Sergio for being disrespectful, but that would be rather disrespectful of me…" Icelyn sighed.

"The fella's too cocky, but he gets the job done." Bronco admitted.

"Any type of player to get rid of in mind? Rude players? Weak? Weird?" Yanna asked, not eyeing away from her book.

"I'd suggest someone along the weak side." Alexandria recommended. "With so many of us, anyone who isn't up for the challenges are liabilities to the team. No disrespect of course, but… it's just the way of the competition."

"Icelyn wants to have fun here, but it's very understandable that we must lose some players to make it further." Icelyn commented.

"Taking out someone from the low tier, huh? Makes sense." Bronco inputted. "But who's our most drawback player at the moment?"

"I would say… Leo." Said Alexandria.

"Why him specifically?" Bronco raised a brow.

"I know it's arguable, but what makes him stand out is his failure consistency. Some people may hold back, but with Leo, he always tries yet fails to succeed." Alexandria explained.

"It's because we're already seeing his potential, while someone like Paisley or Keone has yet to show theirs, right?" Icelyn added.

"Right." Alexandria nodded. "I can't think that he could be an asset to the team, seeing the way he handles things."

"He'd be useful in an eating challenge…" Yanna commented, still reading her book.

"Maybe, but how many food based challenges would we actually have? Barely any, the way I see it." Alexandria countered.

Bronco sighed. "Guess we just gotta get down and dirty. Leo's our guy for tonight then."

"No need for guilt, it's simply strategizing in a competition." Alexandria shrugged.

Opening the mess hall doors, Joseph walked in and raised his brow seeing a few of his teammates gathered around a table.

"Um… apologies if I intruded on anything." Said Joseph.

"No worries, man." Bronco smiled. "Some of us were in here, so we just wanted to talk about tonight's vote."

Joseph shrugged and walked over to the drink machine to pour himself a glass of water.

"If I can input to this, I think my vote would be for Leo." The Sawk stated. "He's a good guy, but he's not exactly the most reliable."

"No, no, it's a good call." Bronco assured. "We were just talking about him too. Wanna join up with our vote then?"

"...sure." Joseph replied before calmly taking a sip of water.

"Alright, our vote's for Leo tonight…" Bronco finished.

"Icelyn hopes he won't take it personally…" Icelyn sighed.

As the alliance returned to talking each other, Joseph walked away to the doors. He glanced back, exchanging blank looks with Alexandria before heading out. The Prinplup smirked and faced back to her allies.

 **0000000**

 **Alexandria chuckled to herself.**

" **He's smart. Joseph should know that was more than a simple team discussion. Now there's two paths to go down: one where I've reassured his trust so I can blindside him at anytime, or one where we get to have our own personal battle."**

" **Let's see how he plays this out…"**

 **0000000**

* * *

At the bonfire pit, the twelve Diehard Wailords sat on the stumps as they awaited the dreadful ceremony to commence. Sitting next each other, Paisley and Leo snickered as they exchanged jokes while Deon chuckled along.

Alexandria sighed to herself. "Hate to see that broken up…"

"Welcome losers, to the elimination ceremony!" Announced Wes. "You were here two challenges ago, so you should know the deal. Whoever doesn't get a marshmallow tonight is out of the game, and they can never, _ever_ come back. So let's hope you don't lose someone crucial!"

"Tch!" Sergio scoffed, still frustrated from the challenge. "You know with me on the team, we should never lose in a damn sport. We should've won today!"

Wes rolled his eyes. "Whatever, man. If it's any consolation, I'll save you the hassle and throw these to you. So… first one goes go Sergio."

Wes threw him a marshmallow, which he annoyingly swiped out of the air.

"...Yanna."

Instead of letting him throw it, she levitated a marshmallow from the plate and brought it to herself.

"I said I'd throw 'em, _yeesh_!" Wes got annoyed. "Next one's to Icelyn!"

Icelyn smiled as she held her hands out to catch the marshmallow.

"Bronco, you're good tonight."

Bronco smirked as he caught the marshmallow in his mouth, though he regretfully grimaced from the taste.

"Joseph, Alexandria, you two are safe."

Alexandria calmly caught the marshmallow as Joseph caught his and tossed it to the ground.

"Mm… Nora, you're safe too."

Nora shrugged and snatched her marshmallow from the air.

"Keone… and Fynn."

Fynn eagerly grabbed his as Keone just crushed it in his hand.

"We made it!" He chirped to the Lycanroc.

"Yeah, yeah…" Keone sighed.

"And now, we're down to the bottom three…" Wes smirked.

The final three glanced worriedly at each other. Deon anxiously stood up from his seat.

"W-Wait, I don't want anyone of us three to leave!" He protested. "Is this right!?"

"Hey. Votes are part of the game, bro. Sorry." Wes shrugged. "But hey, next marshmallow goes to you."

Deon grabbed his marshmallow and nervously looked at his two remaining friends.

"Down to just Paisley and Leo, huh?" Wes raised a brow in amusement. "Which one of you is going home tonight? The obnoxious one? Or the other obnoxious one?"

Leo gulped. "Ah crud…"

"Please let some BS miracle happen…" Paisley prayed.

"The final marshmallow of the night goes to… Paisley."

Paisley sighed in both relief and sorrow. Leo grunted and scratched the back of his head in defeat.

"Well… you win some, you lose some I guess…" Leo sighed.

"Wait dude! I don't want you to go!" Deon pleaded.

"We're supposed to be the best three pals in the world! You can't leave now!" Paisley pleaded as well.

Leo grinned. "Hey, after the show we can still be! I messed up now, but once this is all done it's fun time, _full time_!"

"Well Leo, looks like you can't joke your way out of this one… just like with everything else." Wes smirked. "So I'm afraid you're outta the game."

Leo grinned as he rushed up his two friends, bringing them in for a tight hug.

"See ya guys later! While I'm gone, I'll eat good food for the three of us on the outside!" Leo joked.

Deon sighed but gratefully returned the hug along with Paisley. The Munchlax let them go and hurried off to the boat.

"Peace!" He waved back as he ran off.

"Bye, you funny trash bag!" Paisley waved.

Deon weakly smiled and tiredly waved back as well.

 **0000000**

" **Guess I couldn't** _ **dodge**_ **the bullet on this one, hehe!" Leo joked.**

" **I lost the game, sure, but I made some cool friends** _ **and**_ **I'm sure just being on the show is enough to get me recognized for me to start my career as a comedian! I should add Paisley; she'd be really fun on a tour!"**

" **For a winner, it's a good guess that Paisley and Deon can make it to the top! I'll keep up with you guys on TV!"**

* * *

 **0000000**

Kimber groaned as she cracked her back, stepping into her cabin. She eyed around curiously seeing the team's canine and feline missing.

"The hell? Where's Quinn and that one weirdo?" She asked.

"Out for a walk." Celeste replied, getting into her bed. "They said they'll be back in a few minutes."

Muriel started chuckling amusedly as she laid on her bed, dangling her hair as it rolled Rosie and Bonnie up and down. Rosie squealed in fear though Bonnie just remained emotionless as they were lifted up and down. Kimber rolled her eyes and headed off to bed.

"Weirdos…" She muttered.

Meeting in the bathroom by the sinks, Quinn and Sascha faced off glaring down at the other. Quinn huffed and smirked as Sascha lowly growled.

"You're a devil amongst us." Sascha scowled.

Quinn rolled her eyes. "It's pretty annoying to see your defense is nothing but insults. In _my_ defense, I'm just playing the game and nothing more. Just accept that."

"You have a demon's pride. I can already predict that you seek nothing but the fortune of this game." Sascha retorted.

"And the cute Grey's love. Don't forget that." Quinn winked.

"Why are you after him? Do you only desire the reputation a Houndoom holds, or do you truly like him for who he is?" Sascha shot back.

Quinn chuckled. "I don't think someone who's so foreign to modern life should talk about my love life. See, I don't want him to be uncomfortable or intimidated, but just to let him know that by the end of his show he'll be all mine…"

"That is pure greed…" Sascha seethed.

The bathroom door suddenly opened, Grey silently yawning as he walked in. When he paid attention to them, he blinked before becoming flustered. He began to creep back out before making a full sprint away from them.

"Grey!" Sascha called after him. She glared back at Quinn. "Can't you see that you're an embarrassment to him!?"

"You're an embarrassment to yourself, villager." Quinn smirked.

"What does that mean!?" Sascha snapped.

"Just means you're too old style to belong here. Now if you excuse me, I'll be heading back for a good night sleep." Quinn finished, walking to the door. Right as she passed the Lycanroc, she whispered something to her ear. "Try to take me down, hm?"

Quinn chuckled as she walked out, leaving Sascha to tremble in frustration.

"I will _always_ get what I want…" Quinn smirked.

 **Welp, that's the end of the chapter! Thanks for sticking by and reading! I would love any feedback on the story; it would mean a lot to me and help me out on writing this. Until next time…**

 **See! Ya!**


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